U4 



.S<tiT+ 




lii i 



11.8 I : 

' III- 
mm' 

illjili g 





SVAMPSCOTT 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES OF THE 
TOWN. 




By WALDO THOMPSON. 

Member of the New Etiffland Historic Genealogical Society. 



L YNN : 
PRESS OF THOS. P. N 
J885. 




f^>V^ .^«- ^'J^',,^ 



Copyrighted, 18S5, by 
WALDO THOMPSON, LYNN, MASS. 



PREFACE. 



The writer of local sketches like these has two 
sources of satisfaction, in knowing first that critics 
will not jud^e his work by the strict canons which 
control more dignified historical compositions, and 
secondly, that his readers will be more interested in 
the facts set before them than in their literary dress. 
Then, aside from the common interest in their birth- 
place and home which any writer may assume of his 
townsmen, a Swampscott historian may fairly expect 
some special interest in his efibrts. The claims of 
localities to recognition by the world have commonly 
been either the possession of great natural beauty or 
picturesqueness ; or associations with important his- 
toric names or events. Now in both these respects 
Swampscott is entitled to consideration. Two hun- 
dred and fifty years ago her picturesque shore, from 
Black Will's Cliff to Forest River, became the home 
of Lieutenant-Governor John Humphrey, one of the 
great men of our rising Commonwealth. He had not 
come over with the large company under Governor 
Winthrop, but remained in England until 1634, to 



IV PREFACE. 



represent the interests of the Colony before tlie King. 
So efficiently did he perform this service that on his 
arrival he was given, of the the finest estates in the 
gift of the government. Here, with his wife, the 
Lady Susan, daughter of the Earl of Lincoln, he be- 
gan the establishment of a manorial home, wliich 
should remind them of the noble estates with which 
they were familiar in their native land. If their 
modest mansion could not compete witli the stately- 
halls, which they had left, nature had been lavish of 
her charms, so that no ducal park in England could 
surpass their estate in its vistas of meadow and sea 
and forest glade. That the\ ajDpreciated this beauty is 
made probable by letters afterwards written from Eng- 
land by their pastor, the Rev. Hugh Peters, minister in 
Salem, with whom Mr. Humphrey was very intimate. 
We can picture him spending an autumn afternoon 
with his parishioners, talking with the Governor of the 
great events portending in England, and walking out 
with the family upon the cliff, while the Lady Susan 
delighted in pointing out this and that landscape of 
beauty, and comparing it with some scene of cherished 
memory. At all events their pastor acquired an ap- 
preciative familiarity with the beauty of our shores. 
Having returned, to England upon some diplomatic 
mission for the Colony- Peters became a warm friend 
of Oliver Cromwell, and was induced to stay and help 
in forming the English Commonwealth. He preached 
a funeral discoiuse over •' the grav discrowned head" 
of Charles L After the death of Archbishop Land. 



PREFACE. 



Parliament presented to him his library. From this 
library at Whitehall, he writes of his love for New 
England, and of its natural beauties, as he might have 
admired them in company with his most distin- 
guished parishioners, when at their home in Swamp- 
scott. Though the Humphreys returned to England, 
their name still clung to the hamlet where they had 
lived, and is now perpetuated in our principal street. 
They left also some of their children, as is suggested 
by the picture of their embarkation off the cliffs ; and 
from these have descended citizens of whom the coun- 
try is justly proud. Among others, old John Brown, 
our "' martyr for the rights of man." traced his 
backward to the Swampscott Humphreys. 

Of the successors to the Lieutenant-Governor's es- 
tate, the "• Ladye Deborah Moodye," who had once 
been dealt with by the famous Star Chamber Court, 
was a person of no little consideration in the Massa- 
chusetts Colony ; and afterward came to have great 
influence with Governor Stuvvesant in directing the 
affairs of New York. Later, the Burrills. who held 
the estate for a centurv. furnished men who were 
highly esteemed in the colonial councils, and who 
w^ere entrusted with some important diplomatic duties. 

If other Swampscott families have had less distin- 
guished associations, they have not been w^anting in 
those sterling virtues of industry and courage which 
are necessary to the founding of communities. In a 
conspicuous place in the Representatives' Hall of 
Massachusetts has hung for many years a cod, sug- 



VI PREFACE. 



gestive of the most important industry of the infant 
commonwealth. That industry found in Swampscott 
efficient promotion, and to this day Swampscott fisher- 
men hold such pre-eminence on the coast for high char- 
acter and self-respecting devotion to duty, that the 
town may well be proud of its seal. The Bear of 
Berne, the Lion of Lucerne, are no truer badges of 
honor than is the Schooner of Swampscott with its 
hardy skipper at the helm. 

And our men of the sea have done more than 
increase their countr3^'s wealth. None have been 
more forward than they to maintain in battle her life 
and honor. In old colonial times we had our repre- 
sentatives at the siege of Louisbiu-g. Sw^ampscott fired 
one of those '' shots heard round the world " at Lex- 
ington. Then, in 1812, our fleet helped man the ves- 
sels which disputed successfully with the mistress of 
the seas, and brought home many a British trophy . 
Next to our brave men, we are proud of our old can- 
non, bearing the roval arms, which was captured by 
the ship •' Grand Turk," and awarded to Swampscott. 
After commanding our harbor for many years from 
VVinnipesikett Hill, it now rests in its appropriate 
place in Monument Square, at the foot of the shaft 
which commemorates the brave men who in the War 
of the Re])ellion, on sea and land, emulated the deeds 
of yore. 

To enlarge now upon the picturesqueness of our 
shores, the romantic beauty of our walks and drives, 
and the attractiveness of our fine estates, would seem 



PREFACE. Vll 



to US to be calling a circle round, the heavens blue, or 
the ocean wide. We permit others, therefore, to speak 
our praises, only inviting them here to rest from their 
toils, and find delight in sea and shore. Let them 
come in the heat of summer and lie dreamily upon the 
shore, watching 

"The fisherman in his boat, far out 
Beyond the headland;" 

Or let them come again in autumn, when the storms 



have set in, 



And down the darkeninj^ coast run 
The tumultuous surges; " 



Whenever it is, we shall contentedly await their verdict 
upon our shore. 

SwAMPSCOTT, January /. iS8^. 



AUTHOR'S ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 



In issuing in this form, articles which, when first 
published, I had no thought of ever making into a 
book, I would tender my grateful acknowledgments 
to the numerous individuals, who, in various ways, 
have kindly given me their aid and encouragement. 
The " Humphrey Family in America," by Frederick 
Humphrey, M.D., has given me much information in 
regard to Sir John Humphrey and his family. For 
many statements herein presented, I am indebted to 
printed works and written communications from sev- 
eral highly esteemed authors and respected friends, 
among whom I would mention Alonzo Lewis, James 
R. Newhall, and David N. Johnson, Lynn histo- 
rians ; also to B. J. Lindsey, Town Clerk of Swamp- 
scott ; the Selectmen of the town ; Horace N. Hastings, 
editor of Swampscott Enterprise^ and Rev. George 
A. Jackson. 

The Author. 

May I, 1SS5. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I. 

FIRST SETTLERS. 

CHAPTER H. 
ORIGIN OF THE NAME SWAMPSCOTT 

CHAPTER HI. 
THE HUMPHREY FAMILY. 

CHAPTER I\\ 
RALPH KING. 

CHAPTER V. 
OTHER OLD FAMILIES. 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE SEA SERPENT. 

CHAPTER VH. 
FISHING INTERESTS, 

CHAPTER VHI. 
ALONG THE SHORE. 

CHAPTER IX. 

POLITICAL AND OTHER NOTES. 



CONTENTS. XI 



CHAPTER X. 

CHURCHES, REFORM AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES. 

CHAPTER XI. 

ORGANIZATION OF THE TOWN. 

CHAPTER Xn." 
TOWN IMPROVEMENTS. 

CHAPTER XHI. 

SCHOOLS. 

CHAPTER XIV. 

WAR RECORD. 

CHAPTER XV. 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 

CHAPTER XVI. 
SWAMPSCOTT AS A WATERING PLACE. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

SUMMER RESIDENTS. 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

YACHTING. 

CHAPTER XIX. 

BEACH BLUFF. 

CHAPTER XX. 

THE POINT. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

THE MUDGE ESTATE. 



HISTORICilL 
SKETCHES OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



CHAPTER r. 

FIRST SETTLERS 



A settlement by the Pilgrim Fathers, a band of 
Puritan exiles from England, who had first sought 
refuge in Holland, was made at Plymouth, on the 
shore of Cape Cod Bay, on the 21st of December, 
1620. The exiles came to found a colony, and en- 
dured their trials with a heroism, the memory of 
which their descendants gratefully cherish. Before 
landing in America they organized a government in 
the cabin of the Mayflower, the ship which brought 
them from foreign shores. In 1628, a colony of about 
one hundred Puritans, under Captain Endicott, was 
planted at Salem, they taking the name from Psalms 
Ixxvi : 2 : — '* In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his 
dwelling place in Zion." The name was given to its 
whole territory along the shore. Rev. Thomas Hig- 
3 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



ginson and tliree other clergymen, together with aliout 
two lumdred others, settled in this vicinity. 

FRANCIS INGALI.S. 

Of that little band, were Francis and Edmund In- 
galls, who, in 1629, started from Salem, with'' leave 
to go where they would." It was in the early part of 
June when Francis and his brother arrived in what is 
now Lynn. Francis Ingalls was a tanner, and was 
born in England, in 1601. Edmund was a farmer, 
and settled near what is now Goldfish Pond, Fayette 
Street. He was drowned, in crossing Saugus river, 
in 164S, leaving a wife named Ann, and nine chil- 
dren, whose descendants are numerous. Francis set- 
tled in that portion of the town which was incorpora- 
ted as Swampscott in 1S52 ; as has been quaintly 
sung: — 

" Two Inindrcd years are fjfonc 
And three and fifty more, 
Since Goodman Francis Ingalls 
First trod the Swampscott shore." 

He found the place inhabited by Indians, with their 
wigwams extending from Black Will's ClitV along tlie 
whole North Shore. He commenced at once to 
erect a log cabin, and appropriated to himself such 
portions of land as appeared most eligible for cultiva- 
tion. 

" Ingalls' house was a cabin of logs 
Of logs, with mud chinked in, 
Outside it had a chimney of stone, 
And a stone fire-place within." 




^ I" ? ecr ~=T=BWUIn^L. 



;^"n 



ING \LI S lOG CABIN 1626 FIRST TWNb-RY IV NFVV 
ENGLAND, 1632. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 3 



He also built the first tannery in New England, in 
1633, on-the easterly side of his home, and near Hum- 
phrey's Brook. The vats remained there until 1825 ; 
when they were taken up a hide was found in 
one of them in a good state of preservation. It 
has been the custom of tanners ever since to locate, 
when they could, by the side of a running brook. 
From this beginning in Swampscott has sprung an 
industry of no mean proportion. In 1880 there were 
330 tanneries in New England, distributed as follows : 
Maine, 83 ; Massachusetts, 133 ; New Hampshire, 53 ; 
Vermont, 53 ; Rhode Island, 4 ; Connecticut, 11. 

Francis Ingalls' log cabin was built on land now^ 
known as the corner of Burrill and New Ocean 
Streets. When a house was built on the lot, by 
Horace M. Norton, he found relics of the log house 
and the stone chimney. Frederick O. Ellis, prin- 
cipal of the Norcross School, in South Boston, now 
owns the estate, enjoying his residence where the first 
house was built, in 16397 The Ingalls family have a 
fine [imaginary] picture of the log house, tannery and 
surroundings, executed by the artist, T. C. Oliver. 
As appears from marks since found, the log cabin 
must have been about sixteen by thirty feet, facing 
due south, as was the custom in those days and for 
many years afterward, to enable the occupants to 
secure the greatest benefit from the sun in winter, and 
also to tell the time of day by marks upon the window- 
sill. The luxury of time-pieces were then unknown, 
and durino- cloudy weather the hour-Hass w^as used. 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



The house was covered with flags and rushes that 
grew near at hand in the pond, which was large in 
those days, and whose outlet was by the (what is now 
Stacey's) brook, to the sea at King's Beach. Toward 
the w^est, one mile away, he could see the smoke of 
his brother's fire, as it curled upward in the clearing. 
In full view was the ocean and what is now Egg- 
Rock. Fish in abundance could be found in the bay, 
while shell fish were captured by the shore, on whose 
smooth surface the Indian Chief Squanscot danced 
and mingled his song with the roar of the waves. 
Francis Ingalls lived in Swampscott during the greater 
part of his life, and died at the age of seventy-one 
years. He made his will August i3, 1672, and it 
was probated in Boston. November i, 1672: his in- 
ventory was filed November 30, 1672. A copy of the 
will and inventory, the writer secured at the Probate 
Office in Boston, and it is given in full below. 

FRANCIS ingalls' WILL. 

In the name of God, Amen. 

I, ffrances Ingalls, being weak in bodye But of perfect and 
sound understanding, doe make this my last will and Testa- 
ment, revoking all other wills by me formerly made Imp'rs 
first I bequeath my soule into the hands of AUmighty God, 
my creatore, and unto Jesus Christ my Redeemer, and unto 
the holy spirit, my comforter: and my bodye to be decently 
interred, by my survivors. And my will is that all my debts 
and funeral charges be discharged by my executors hereafter 
mentioned. Item, my will is that all my estate, mo\'able and 
Imovable, I doe give unto mv beloved wife Mary IngalU 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



(whom I doe make sole executrix of this my last will) for 
the sustentation, support and comfort of her life whilst she 
continue in this world. And my will is that when it shall 
please God to take her out of this world that then after my 
debts be discharged, and my son Joseph belknap satisfied for 
his disbursements that then what there shall remaine unto 
Elizabeth farman now living at Andover, my will is that she 
shall have. In witness there of I have set to my hand and 
seale this twelth of August one Thousand six hundred and 
seventy-two. 

his 
^^^"^^^~ FFRANCES X INGOLS. 

Peter Brackett. mark. 

Jabez Salter. 

Peter Brackett made oath in Court this 1 Nov'r, 1672, made 
oath that having subscribed his named as a witness was pre- 
sent on the day of the date of this will and saw ffrances 
ingoUs signe, seale and publish this as his last will and 
Testament and that when hee so did hee was of disposing 
minde to my best understanding. As attests 

ISAAC ADDINGTON, Cler. 

After mentioning a few minor articles, the inven- 
tory filed November 30, 1672, was as follows : 

inventory of estate. 

5 acres of medow at Lyn at 5 pounds, £25. A piece of 
land in ye wilderness at Lyn, 2 coats, 2 pairs of breeches, i 
pair draws, and a lether dublet, and a wescoat, i hat and a 
pair of stockens, i pr. shoes, 3 prs. pillows, 3 napkins, 8 
pieces of old pewter, i Iron Kittoll, a frying pan, i Bible and 
another book, a warming pan, and dripping pan 3 chairs 4 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



cushons, a spininir wlieele 2 silver spoons. Dues to his 
estate from Nicholas Rich lyt 17s. Dues to his estate from 
Thomas Tavlor ii£. 

Francis Ingalls was the progenitor of the Ingalls 
family of Swampscott, and one of its members, Fran- 
cis Echnund Ingalls, of Burrill Street, was named for 
the two brothers. 

" The g-ood old founders of our race 

Wroug^ht out their own way with toil, 
And left to us a record proud, 
On old New England soil." 

(jeorge Kcysam, a tanner in Swampscott, and who 
was admitted a freeman in December 14, 163S, was 
probabl}- connected with Mr. Ingalls' establishment. 
He married Elizabeth Ilolyoke, and had a son, who 
died in Salem, 1690. 



CHAPTER II. 



ORIGIN OF THE NAME SWAMPSCOTT. 



The name Swampscott is of Indian origin. Of the 
great Algonkin family of Indians who peopled this 
country from Canada to South Carolina, and from the 
Atlantic to the Rocky Mountains, those who lived in 
this vicinity were known as the Massachusetts or 
Natick Tribe. Into their language the Apostle Eliot 
translated the Bible. Here we may look for the 
elements of our name. It is composed of two Indian 
words, a substantive, Ompsk, and an appellative, 
Musqui, meaning respectively {a statidino) rock, and 
red: with the local affix " ut." MusqiiL-ompsk-ut 
means literally " at the red rock." This by con- 
traction became AV squonipskut, and then, the English 
dropping the initial ;;/, Squampskut. Swampscot, 
Swampscott.* 

* For this etymology, acknowledgrnent should be made to the " Collec- 
tion of the Connecticut Historical Society," Vol. II., page iS. The writer 
has also been curious to consult Eliots' Bible in its use of the above root 
words (for rock and red), and is convinced that the etymology is correctly 
traced. The change from the harsher Sqiiam to Swam would naturally 
enough be made by the English, though in some cases, as in Annis Squa)ii 
the rough sound was retained. 



8 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



Confirmatory of process of change in the name of 
Squamskut, an old Indian chief who resided near 
the Merriinac River, told the whites: '' My trihe has 
been accustomed from time immemorial to go south 
to the plains every year to pass the summer months." 
About the year 1S09 the late Colonel Leonard Thomp- 
son, of Woburn, saw a rough sketch of the old chief- 
tain in Billerica. 



THE INDIANS. 

The Indians were numerous here before white men 
trod our shores. Bones of Indians have been found 
on Wm. Rowell's land, and workmen while digging 
a trench for water pipes near the grammar school- 
house found two skeletons, with shells and arrow 
heads. They were buried with their faces towards 
the south. The Indian time for planting was when 
the leaves of the oak started forth in the spring. The 
women performed all the labor of agriculture, using 
clam shells for tools. Fish bones were used for 
hooks, and wild hemp was made into fish lines. 
Their money was of two kinds — one made of the 
twisted part of the conkle, and called wampum-play, 
or white money, the other of the thick or hinge part 
of the poquahoe clam, and called suckauhoc, or black 
money ; these were bored with a sharp stone, and 
one black piece was equal to two white ones. The 
Indians are said to have received the first settlers here 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 9 

in a friendly manner, and thought their ship was a 
winged island, and the sound of the cannon they mis- 
took for thunder. 



BLACK WILL. 

The Indians on the North Shore claimed the land. 
Poquanum, or Duke Skin, was Sachem, and was 
known as " Duke William," and commonly as '^ Black 
Will," in 1630. William Witter who was a farmer, 
and lived near wliat is now the estate of Benjamin G. 
Ingalls, testified that "Mr. Dexter gave a suit of 
clothes, two stone pestles and a jewsharp for Nahant 
and Black Weill's Cliff." The parties occupied the 
entire day in making the trade, and it was not until 
Mr. Dexter had gone four miles through the woods, 
and played sixteen tunes on the jewsharp, before^ the 
assembled tribes, to convince them that the tongue 
was not leather, that he secured what he thought to 
be a good title to the land. The town afterwards 
treated the bargain as void, declaring that Black 
Will's deed was " of no more value than the scratch of 
a bear's paw," and the matter was finally settled ad- 
versely to Mr. Dexter. In 1633, several vessels 
wdiich had been sent to Pemaquid, in pursuit of 
pirates, stopped at Scarborough, Me., where, finding 
Black Will, they hung him, in revenge for the mur- 
der of William Bagnall, who was killed by the Indians 
in October, 1631. 
4 



10 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



GENERAL NOTES. 

In 1630, the first brickyard was established in 
vSwampscott on the northerly side of Humphrey's 
brook, near Ingalls' tannery. 

In November, 1633, a vessel of which John Hum- 
phrey was part owner, and which was laden with 
fish was wrecked oft' Cape Charles, and twelve men 
drowned. 

The summer of 1634 ^^^ ^^'T ^^^^ '^^^^ there was 
no rain for six weeks preceding October 14. 

In 1634, Samuel Smith, a farmer, lived near what 
is now the farm of Colonel Stetson. 

The tide rose to a very great height during the 
heavy gale August 3, 1638. 

In 1638, Edmund and Francis Ingalls were granted 
one hundred and twenty acres of upland and meadow, 
by order of the Court. 

In 1639, the Court forbade the people to spread 
bass and codfish upon their lands, for the purpose of 
enriching their soil, and also passed the following re- 
lating to ladies' dress : — " No garment shall be made 
with short sleeves, and such as have garments with 
short sleeves shall not wear the same unless they cover 
the arms to the wrist ; and hereafter no person what- 
ever shall make any garment for women with sleeves 
more than half an ell wide, that is, twenty-two and 
one-half inches." 



CHAPTER III. 



THE HUMPHREY FAMILY. 



Humphrey elected Deputy Governor. — Arrival in 
1634. — Rstate in Swampscott. — Departure, 



Upon the formation in England of the Massachu- 
setts Company, which purchased from the English 
Council of State a patent for lands on these shores, 
where " Non-conformists might enjoy the liberty of 
their own persuasion in matters of worship and church 
discipline." John Humphrey, an able and wealthy 
gentleman from Dorchester, was chosen Deputy Gov- 
ernor. When Governor Winthrop's company came 
over in 1629, Humphrey remained behind to look 
after the home interests of the Colony. He came in 

1634, bringing with him various useful gifts for the 
infant settlements. In recognition of his rank and 
services he was granted a valuable estate at Swamp- 
scott. In old Massachusetts records, of the year 

1635, I find under date of May 6, the following: 
'• Further it is ordered that the land between the 
Clifl?'and Forest River near Marblehead, shall for the 
present be improved by John Humphrey, Esq." 



12 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

The bounds extended a mile from King's Beach to a 
point near a great white oak, which stood until recent 
times, and which called out from Mr. Lewis the 
lines: — 

" O, spare the tree, \vhose dewy tears 
Has fallen for two hundred years." 

Upon this estate, the Lieutenant Governor* l:)uilt 
his house — now the old farm house on the estate of 
the late E. R. Mudge — having brought the frame 
and the bricks for the same from England. ^Vithin a 
few years this house has been remodeled, and is now 
much sought for by summer residents, from far and 
near. The farmhouse was provided with large fire- 
places nearly eight feet wide, and the mammoth 
chimneys would admit a log six feet in length. The 
frame was large and strong, and in the present day 
its heavy oak beams are to be seen, sound as in "days 
of yore." The early settlers of two centuries ago 
manifested a becoming shrewdness in building with 
substantial material ; were it not so, we woidd not 
have left to us so many of those old houses which to- 
day stand as monuments of the history of "• ye olden 
time." 

The wife of Mr. Humphrey was of a noble family, 
being the Lady Susan, second daughter of Thomas, 
Earl of Lincoln. 



* Though unquestionably entitled to this appellation, Mr. Humphrey 
does not appear to have assumed the duties of Deputy Governor on this 
side of the water. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 13 



Besides serving as one of the " assistants" to the 
Governor, our distinguished townsman became a mem- 
ber of the Artillery Company in 1640, and in June, 
1641, was appointed to the command of all the militia 
in the county, with the title of Sergeant Major General. 

Among the incidents of his residence here, the re- 
cords show that in 1640 his barn, with all his corn 
and hay was burnt, by the carelessness of his servant, 
Henry Stevens, in setting fire to gunpowder. At the 
Court of Assistants, on the first of November, Henry 
Stevens was tried, and on conviction was ordered to be 
servant to Mr. Humphrey for twenty-one years, tow- 
ards recompensing him. The Court also allowed Mr. 
Humphrey £250 for his loss, and his good services. 

The Humphrey family remained in Swampscott 
until late in the year 1641, when at the desire of the 
Lady Susan, they returned to England. The change 
was too great from her high position, as the pride of 
youth and beauty at the court of the first monarch in 
Europe, to this home in the cold and barren wilder- 
ness of Swampscott, occupied by its few lonely log 
houses and wigwams, round which the Indians were 
roaming by day, and the wild beasts by night. Her 
sighs for her native land were too powerful for the lov- 
ing heart of him who had brought her hither to rest. 

Bidding farewell to those of their children whom 

they were to leave behind, they embarked from King's 

Beach, near Black Will's Clift', onl}?^ a short distance 

from their house. They were soon on board, and 

^WMth sails set and anchors weighed, they took their 



14 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



last look at these wooded shores, and left for their 
native country. The estate, which contained about 
thirteen hundred acres, was sold. The homestead, 
with the adjoining lands, was purchased in 1641 by 
the Lady Deborah Moody, who paid for it £1,100. 
Subsequently the house and a considerable portion of 
the estate came into the possession of the Honorable 
Ebenezer Burrill, in whose family it was handed 



^'r^'- 




& ---3a^ 



DEPARTURE. 



down until 1799, when it passed into the hands of 
Roliert Hooper, thence to his daughter, Mrs. W. 
Reed, who in March 27, 1S43, sold it to the Honor- 
able E. Redington Mudge. 



DANIEL KING. 



Soon after the departure of Hiunphrev, most of the 
land belonging to his estate became the property of 
Daniel King, who was a merchant, and, in 1643, lived 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 15 

in Swampscott, where " King's Beach" still bears his 
name. Whether he purchased the homestead property 
from Lady Moody or not is uncertain, but he seems 
to have had it in possession soon after she went to 
New York. In Judge Newhall's history of Lynn 
(edition of 1883), he says : "The King family were 
located chiefly about Swampscott, though they owned 
land in other quarters. They were an enterprising 
family, and in addition to farming and Ashing, car- 
ried on a varied sort of commercial business, their 
traffic extending even to Barbadoes. * * The in- 
ventory of the estate of Daniel King, Senior, who 
died May 38, 1672, gives an amount of X' 1,528 9s." 

GENERAL NOTES. 

September 4, 1640, there was a great storm and 
high tides. In October money was very scarce, 
which caused the value of land and cattle to fall one- 
half. 

The winter of 1643 was exceedingly cold, and very 
deep snow ; and there was great alarm among the 
colonists, occasion(?d by the reported determination of 
the Indians to exterminate them. 

John Phillips settled in Swampscott in 1650, and 
he died in 1694. His wife's name was Hannah, and 
they were parents of two children. 

In 1 65 1, the Court ordered " that no person who is 
not worth two hundred pounds shall wear any gold 
or silver lace or any silk hose or scarfs," 



16 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



On Sunday, July 12, of this year, three men of the 
Baptist persuasion, whose names were John Clarke, 
J. Crandall and O. Holmes, came from Newport, 
and went to the house of William Witter, at Swamp- 
scott, "now two miles out of the town of Lynn" 
says their Chronicle. Mr. Clarke preached and ad- 
ministered the sacrament and re-baptized Mr. Witter. 
This having been reported to the authorities, two con- 
stables were sent to Swampscott to apprehend them 
as disturbers of the peace. Having a warrant, they 
entered the house where Mr. Clarke was speaking, 
arrested the three strangers, and took them to Lynn. 
The next day they were taken to Boston, where they 
were tried and fined thirty shillings. One of the men 
refusing to pay the fine, he was severely punished. 
Mr. Witter was brought before the Salem Court in 
November for " neglecting discourses and being re- 
baptized." 

In 1656, John Blaney, whose house was near 
Blaney's Beach, was united in marriage with E. 
Purchise. 

A road from Lynn to Marblehead, over the Swamp- 
scott beaches, was laid out July 5, 1659. 

March 8, 1661, Richard Saltonstall bought a lot of 
land, and it was recorded as being in Swampscott. 

This year, also, nine acres of Swampscott land was 
purchased by Robert Ingalls. 

In the year 1671, Daniel King made his will and 
spoke of the property being in " Swampscott," and 
not in Lynn. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 17 

In 1678, Indian corn was two shillings per bushel. 

When the Indians had mostly retired from this part 
of the country it was thought important that their 
titles should be conveyed to the settlers, and up to 
16S3 many deeds were given and recorded. 



CHAPTER IV. 

RALPH KING. 

Laud '^Titles. — Ralph Kuii^' s Deed. 



LAND TITLES. 

The writer has a copy of a phiii of huul in Swaiiip- 
scott, surveyed by Joseph Burney at the request of 
Eben Burrill. The lot contained six hundred and 
fifty-four acres and eighty-eight poles. There were 
only five houses on the land, situated as follows : — 
That of Walter Phillips, Sen., at Phillips Point, near 
Phillips Beach; Walter Phillips, Jr., on the C. P. 
Curtis estate 1^1883) ; Eben Burrill, on the Mudge 
estate ; Joseph Blaney, on Black Will's Cliff; and 
Jacob Phillips, near the residence of the late John P. 
Palmer. Only two of the above are now standing 
(1SS3). Captain Ralph King mortgaged the prop- 
erty with the others to William Brown, of Salem. 
The boundaries commenced at Red Rock, following 
the shore to Phillips Beach, thence across Long Pond 
to Paradise Road (so named at the present day), 
through Mudge's Woods, and thence westerly to the 



SWAMPSCOTT. 19 



Starting point. A copy of the plan may be seen in 
tlie Tov\Mi Library room, presented to tlie Library by 
the writer. 

RALPH KING. 

Ralpli King, one of the Selectmen of Lynn (Svvamp- 
scott), in June, 1681, when he was about forty-two 
years of age, with the aid of some others, ran the 
Lynn line between Lynn and Boston. He married 
^L^ry Elizabeth Walker, of Lynn, in March, 1663. 
He passed away in about 1670, leaving to his son his 
estate at Fisher's Point, now called Phillips Point, 
vSwampscott. 

RAT^PH king's deed. 

The following is a copy of a deed given July 28, 
1684, by Ralph King to William Brown. See Reg- 
istry of Deeds, vol. 29, page 281 : — 

To all xtian people to whom this present deed of Sale shall 
(.'otiie Ralph King of Linn in new England & Elizabeth his 
wife send greeting. 

Know yee that wee the sd Ralph and Elizabeth King for 
and in consideration of the Sum of Three hundred pounds in 
money in new Engld to us in hand before the encealing & 
delivery of these presents, well & timely paid by William 
Bro\vn, Esq.. of Salem in New England, the receipt where of 
wee doe here by acknowledge, and our selves there with to 
bee full\' satisfied and paid. Have given, granted, bargained, 
sould, aliened enfeotied assigned and confirmed, and by these 
presents do freely, fully and absolutely give, grant, bargain 



^0 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



sell alien enfeoff, assigne and confirm unto the Sd. William 
Brown, his heirs and assigns, all that my ftarme given me bv 
my hounr'd ftather, Daniel King, deceased, being 1200 acres 
of Upland and meadow, bee it more or less, being situate and 
lying in the township of Linn commonly called by the name 
of Swampscott, which land is butted and bounded with the 
sea, ab't the westerly end of the long pond lying along by the 
sea syde and soe upon a straight line quite over to a little red 
oak, standing on a brow of a hill, on the southerly syde of a 
path goeing to my ftarme where George Darlinn did live 
which tree is marked with (D : & a k) on the notherly syde, 
and an R & A K on the westerly syde, & soe this lyne runn 
betweene Lynn & my ftarme & soe to run all along betweene 
Linn & my ftarme, to a running brook at the sutherly end of 
John Farrs cS: EdwUrd Richards Lotts, and over Swampscott 
pond to a little walnut tree on the westerly syde of the pond, 
marked with (R K) on the northerly side with (N F) and soe 
to run westerly to another walnut tree marked with (R : K :) 
on the syde and (N : F :) on the northerly, and is bounded on 
ye northerly syde with the land of Ezekiel Needham, and soe 
all along upon a brow of a hill westerly, and soe to the 
highway that goes to Linn, to a stake cSc heap of stones, & 
from thence southerly down to the sea, against the high way. 
Together with all fences, walds, waters, intercourses, liberties, 
privileges and appurtenances whatsoever thereunto belong- 
ing, and all o' Estate right, title and interest of in and to ye 
s'd bargained premises, or any part or parcel there of with all 
original deeds, wrightings & evidences touching or com- 
mencing the same — faire and uncancelled to have and to 
hold the above bargained premises and every part and parcel 
thereof unto him Ye Sd William Brown, his heir and assigns 
to his & their only proper use, benefit and behoofe for ever, 
and we the Sd Ralph and Elizabeth King for o'r selves o'r 
heirs, Exec'rs and Adm'rs doe covenant promise and agree to 
and with Ye Sd William Brown, his heirs and his assigns by 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 21 



these presents that wee the Sd Ralph and Elizabeth at the 
time of the encealing and delivery hereof are Ye true and 
lawful owners of ve above bargained premises us, or either 
of our heirs Eri'crs Adm'rd or other persons by our, or either 
of our means consent default title or procurement, and that 
wee shall and will at any time hereafter upon request for that 
end, made to us or either of us give unto the Sd William 
Brown, his heirs or assigns such further and complete as- 
surance of all the above bargained premises as in law or 
equitv can be devised advised or required. Provided always 
and it is agreed upon by and between the partys above named 
and any thing herein contained notwithstanding that in case 
the within named Ralph and Elizabeth King and of every 
part Si parcell thereof and have in ourselves full power and 
good right and lawfull authority to bargaine sell and assure 
ye same as a good perfect absolute and indefeasible estate of 
inheritance in fee simple without any manner of condition, 
reservation or limitation of use or uses what soever c^ freely 
& clerely exonerated acquited and discharged of and from all 
former and other bargains, sales, gifts grants mortgages, 
dowries titles of dowre power of thirds and of & from all 
other titles, troubles charges & incumbrances of what nature 
or kinds soever, And without ye least deniall let hindrance so 
it trouble Eviction, ejection of us ye Sd Ralph and Elizabeth, 
or either of them, their or either of their heirs, Execrs. 
Admrs. do well and truly pay or cause to bee paid unto the 
above named William Brown, his heirs, execrs. admrs. or as- 
signs at his dwelling house in Salem above S'd the full sum 
of sixty-eight pounds in current money of New England on 
or before the twenty-eighth day of July one thousand six hund- 
red and eightj-five, and sixty-five pounds in current money 
on or before the twenty-eighth day of July, eighty-six and 
sixty-two pounds in current money on or before the twenty- 
eight day of July, eighty-seven, and fitly nine pounds in cur- 
rent money on or before the twenty-eight day of July, eighty 



22 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

eight and fifty-six pounds in current monej' on or before the 
twenty-eight day of July, eighty-nine, and fifty and three 
pounds in current money on or before the twenty-eight day 
of July, one thousand six hundred and ninety, without fraud 
or delay then the above written deed to bee utterly void and 
of none effect other wise to abide, and remain in full force 
and virtue to all interests and purposes in the law whatsoever 
and the estate of the Sd William Brown to become absolute 
in the premises. In witness whereof wee the Sd Rallph and 
Elizabeth King have nereunto put our hands and seals, this 
twenty-eighth, day of July, in the thirty-sixth year of His 
Magisties Reign, Anno. Dom. one thousand six hundred and 
eighty- four, 1684. 

RALPH KING, [seal.] 
ELIZABETH KING, [seal.] 

The word (my) l>etweene the fifth and sixth line interlined 
and ye first word in ye thirtv-six line Blotted before signing. 

Signed, sealed and delivered in presence of 

BENJA. BROWN, 
WILLIAM REDFORD. 

Mr. Ralph King of Lin and Elizabeth his wife came before 
mee lS: he acknowledged the above written instrunient to bee 
his act & deed & she delivered up her right iSl dowre iScc there- 
in, Salem, July 28, 1684. Before mee 

JOHN HATHORNE, Assesl. 

RecVl this 23d of July of Mr. Ralph King the] 

first sume of eighteen pound in money, I say V iS. .€. 
received j 

Rec'd this 30th of July 1686 in money, eigh- ) ^ 1 



teen pounds in money, I say Rec'd p'rme 
\Villiam Brown 



18. 00. 00. 



CHAPTER V. 



OTHER OLD FAMILIES. 



The Bur rills. — The Ingallses. — The PJiillipscs. 
The Blanevs. — The Fullers. — General Notes. 



THE BURRILLS. 

Ebenezer Burrill, who was born July 13, 1679, was 
Representative from Lynn for six vears, and in 1731 
and 1746 was chosen Councillor, He was sent as 
Commissioner to Casco Bay to treat with the Indians 
on the 17th of July, 1732, and returned August 5. 
He lived at Swampscott at the place where Mr. 
Humphrey formerly resided, and died September 6, 
1 761, at the age of eighty-two years. He was a man 
remarkable for sound judgment and activity in all 
useful enterprises. Among his personal property 
may be found enumerated "one negro slave," named 
Ccesar. When Ca'sar died lie was buried on the Bur- 
rill farm, on the lot now ow^ied by William Rowell. 
who found and removed the remains to a more quiet 
resting-place, 



24 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



THE INGALLS FAMILY. 

foliii IiiLi^alls, a descendant of the Iirst settlers of 
Lvnn and vSwampscott, buill a shoe shop in the year 
1790, aiul manufiictured wooden heels, a pair of 
which is now in the possession of his grandson, Fran- 
cis E. Ingalls. The shoe shop is still in good re- 
pair, and is standing on a private way leading from 
Humphrey Street, near Blaney's Beach, and is known 
as the " Red Shop." John Ingalls was born vSeptem- 
ber 14, 1761, and married Martha Blaney in 17S2. 
He died May 3, 1843, and his wife died April 10, 
1S43. 

Joseph Ingalls was born in Lynn, in that section 
now known as " Woodend," in 1785, in the old 
'^Bnrriir' house. [The John Ingalls house, which 
was moved to Swampscott, was originally a shoe 
shop, and was purchased with the proceeds of a sale of 
a cow, which was sold at Woodend for forty dollars. 
After its removal to Swampscott it was enlarged at 
four ditlerent times, by the father and son, until it 
reached its present size. It is now the residence of 
Elbridge G. Foster.] Mr. Ingalls entertained much 
vSummer company, and the large dining room was well 
adapted for evening meetings and social gatherings. 
The house was often the headquarters of the Canter- 
bury and other Shakers, who came to Swampscott in 
the warm weather, in their covered wagons. In the 
morning they visited the beautiful cove in front of the 
present " Lincoln House," to bathe in the salt water, 



OF SVVAMPSCOTT. 25 

which gave it the name of the "• Shakers' Bedroom." 
In the evening they would assemble in the large room, 
and, sitting down, they would spread their white 
handkercliiefs in their laps and keep time with their 
hands while singing their evening hymns. In front 
of the Ingalls house stands an old-fashioned rose-bush 
which has been blooming every Summer for ninet}^ 
years. The pale white rose, tinted with red, with its 
heart of gold, is as fragrant to-day as when its soft 
petals fell in the air that blew from over the sea long 
years ago. Joseph Ingalls lived to the ripe old age of 
eighty years. He was a very benevolent man ; he at- 
tended church at Woodend (Methodist). His sister, 
Mrs. Abigail Phillips informed me, in 1863, that pre- 
vious to the year 1S07 they walked to church in 
Woodend, across King's Beach, then across the fields 
near what is now King Street, Lynn, to what was 
known as the " Piece of King's," where there was a 
large flat rock. On reaching this rock they would sit 
down and exchange their coarse shoes and stockings 
for "peaked-toed" shoes and silk stockings; then 
leaving the old ones beneath the rock, they went on 
their way. On their return another change was 
made, thus keeping their best shoes from the rough 
walking near the shore. From an old newspaper is 
taken the following, in relation to Joseph Ingalls: — 

'' The College Bell. — Last Saturday morning the new 
bell for the Manhattan College was elevated to its high posi- 
tion. Its great weight rendered it difficult to raise it safely 
to its commanding position, but under the masterly skill of 
6 



26 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



J. P. Ryan, who directed the operations, the bell was speedily 
lodged in its sphere of labor. This bell, the gift of Joseph 
Ingalls, Esq., of Mass., is fine-toned, and its clear loud peals 
can be distinctl^y heard five or six miles. On the bell is the 
inscription, 'Presented to Bluemont College, Manhattan, 
Kansas, by Joseph Ingalls, Esq., Swanipscott, Mass., 1861.' 
The donor, a venerable and noble philanthropist of 77 years, 
has, by presenting this useful gift to this noble institution, 
raised a lasting and eloquent memento of his benevolence 
among the beautiful hills and fertile vales of this far off land, 
infinitely more suggestive and eloquent than the most costly 
marble in the shades of Mount Auburn. If every man of 
means would devote a part of his wealth to similar objects, 
these institutions would not long languish for endowments." 

Ephraim Ingalls, brother of Joseph, was born in the 
year 1805, and died in the year 1873. aged sixty-eight 
years. He married, in 1834, Elizabeth Cloon, of 
Marblehead, and they lived next-door neighbors to 
Joseph. She died at the age of fifty-eight. They had 
ten children, seven sons and three daughters. 

Ephraim A., who was born in the year 1826, died 
September 17, 1882. He learned the shoemakers' 
trade of his father, but the bench was not active 
enough for him ; consequently he packed his kit and 
started on a more active life. He was a student at 
the " Lynn Academy," and afterward studied law 
with Abner Goodell, Esq., and was a member of the 
law firm of Ingalls & Parsons. In the year 1863 he be- 
came a member of Pratt & Babb's Express. Mr. In- 
galls held many important oflices, both vState and muni- 
cipal, and was City Clerk of Lynn in 1859 ''^"^^ i860. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



Joseph A. Ingalls, brother of Ephraim A., after 
receiving his education, was a clerk in a grocery store 
and post office kept by Waldo Thompson, for a num- 
ber of years. In 1S58, he went to Boston as clerk for 
the "Mass. Steam Heating Co.," afterwards T. S. 
Clogston & Co., where he w\as admitted as a member 
of the firm in 1S6S. In i^>75, the firm was changed to 
Ingalls & Kendricken. It is now one of the leading 
firms in the steam-heating business, they being located 
on Sudbury Street, Boston. Mr. Ingalls has filled the 
following military offices: — Enlisted as private in 
Co. I, 8th Regiment, M. V., August 20, 1862. Pro- 
moted to Qi.iartermaster Sergeant, November 7, 1862, 
and again to ist Lieutenant and R. Q. M., 8th Reg- 
iment, M. V. After the vi'ar he served as ist Lieu- 
tenant and R. Q. M., 8th Regiment, M. V. M. Cap- 
tain and A. Qj M., 2d Biigade, M. V. M. Captain 
and A. D. C, 2d Brigade, M. V. M. Major and A. 
I. General, 2d Brigade, M. V. 

Benjamin Ingalls was^ well-known and successful 
fisherman of Swampscott in the year 1845. 

In the year 1829, Miss Judith M. Ingalls, aged ten 
years, attended Miss Louise Grosvenor's private 
school, held in what is now the Weeks house, there 
being about fifteen scholars in the school. While 
there she worked a sampler, which her teacher de- 
signed for her, v/ith flowers and vines, for a border, a 
small house on the right, a weeping willow hanging 
over a slab, at the left, the family record in the centre, 
together with these lines, composed by the teacher : 



28 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



" Happy the man to whom God sends 
Obedient children, faithful friends; 
How sweet our daily comforts prove 
When they are seasoned with His love! 
And when by death He takes a friend 
All should in sweet submission bend. 
Children and friends and blessings, too, 
God, our Sovereign; makes them so," 

Mrs. John R. Honors lias tliis sampler in a good 
state of preservation. 



EVENTS IN 17S6. 

In April, 17S6, Benjamin Ingalls, while throwing 
an anchor from his boat, became entangled in the an 
chor rope, and was drawn overboard and drowned. 

In December the snow was seven feet deep on a 
level. 

James Phillips and Mary Burrill were united in 
marriage July 7, 1S05, by Rev. Peter Jayne. They 
had seven children. Mr. Phillips successfully cured 
and introduced to the market the celebrated " Phil- 
lips Beach dunfish," which in after years were cured 
by his son, Eben B. Piiillips, and since his death by 
Abner Hayford, of Swampscott. The}- are widely 
known and sought for by all lovers of salted lish. 
James Phillips was one of the owners of the first fish- 
ing schooner owned in Swampscott, the '• Dove," pur- 
chased in 1795- He is represented as standing at the 
helm of the '' Dove," on the Town seal, adopted in 
1S81. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 29 



About 1S35, Mr. John M. Ives, of Salem, received 
two or three marrow squash seeds from a negress 
whose husband was a cook upon one of the merchant 
ships. Captain Lord from Valparaiso ; he also ob- 
tained the tomato seed in the same manner as " love 
apple;" and after growing them, a year or two, back 
of his store, he was told by a sea captain that they 
were eatable, and from that time they were used as 
food. Mr. Ives planted his two or three squash seeds 
near his store, and raised many squashes, and sold the 
seeds for six cents each. Captain Lord also gave Mr. 
Erastus Ware, who lived on the old Hinckley farm of 
Marblehead (where his son. Horace VV^are. now cul- 
tivates the same squash), five marrow squash seeds; 
he planted three seeds and gave two seeds to Mr. 
James Piiillips which he planted, and saved all the 
seeds from the squashes raised, and the next year, 
Mr. Phillips planted and raised the first marrow 
squash that was sold in the Boston market. 

In 1834 Farmer Phfllips grew two hundred and 
eight bushels of corn on one acre of <:fround. 

" Put your' hands to the plougli ; put the plough in deep; 

And remember the words for the wise to keep — 
* As every man sows, shall every man reap.' " 

Eben B. Phillips was born at Swampscott, July 15, 
1808, and died in his 72d year. In 1814, he attended 
school in the first schoolhouse built in town, which 
was situated near Whale's Beach. In early life he 
followetl the farming and fishing business, but in 1830 



30 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

he engaged in dealing in and manufacturing cod liver 
oil and other oils, and dunfish. He was one of the 
largest land owners and tax payers in the town. He 
was president of the Marblehead Grand Bank twenty- 
one years, from 1^57 to 1878, and director from 1841 
to 1879, thirty-eight years. He was a peculiar man 
and possessed of great cunning as well as shrewdness. 
It was his custom about two or three times a week 
to carry up a cart load of dunfish to Boston, supple- 
mented frequently by an addition of game, such as 
black ducks, peeps, etc., for which he was always 
sure to tind a good market and obtain good prices. 

OIL JOKE. 

About tlie year iS54,'When Mr. Eben B. Phillips 
was in the oil business on Fulton Street, Boston, he 
had a bill against one of his customei's that he consid- 
ered uncollectable, and, being one day in the office of 
a lawyer, with whom he was a acquainted, he left it 
with him for collection. After several months had 
elapsed, Mr. Phillips met the gentleman, and inquired 
what success, if any, he had in collecting the hill ; he 
replied that he had collected it with interest, but, said 
he, '-Mr. Phillips, to tell you the truth, my business 
has been so very dull that I have used the money to 
pay my family expenses, but rest assured, I will pay 
you everv dollar. If you could give me employment 
at your store, I will work it out." Mr. Phillips said : 
''If you desire to cancel your ])ill in that way, come 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 31 



to the store Monday morning and I will set you at 
work, and pay you one dollar an hour. The follow- 
ing Monday morning, at nine o'clock, the lawyer 
entered the store, and reported for duty. Mr. Phil- 
lips furnished him with a pair of overalls and a frock 
which he donned, and was shown a pump used for 
pumping oil to fill barrels from a large cistern in the 
basement. Soon after commencing work, Mr. Phil- 
lips left the store to attend to other business ; return- 
ing about two hours afterwards, he enquired of Mr. 
Phillips what became of the oil that w^as being 
pumped up ; he replied that it ran back into the cis- 
tern ; then he said, " What good am I doing .^" "You 
are only working out your bill as you proposed to 
do." '• Then I shall do no more if such is the case." 
The joke was too good to keep, and soon it became 
known among the acquaintances of the lawyer who 
often referred to pumping oil. 

Captain William A. Phillips lived and died at what 
is now Lincoln House Point. He was born in 1798, 
and died in 1S70, aged 72 years. He was one of the 
Minute Men at Salem fort, and captain of the Lynn 
Rifle Company. He was Collector of Taxes in Lynn 
for a number of years. I have a tax bill receipted by 
him forty years ago. He was connected with the 
Salem Custom House for several years, and his head- 
quarters in Swampscott were at the old Red Shop. 

When Farmer Phillips was married, many were 
the surmises among the neighbors as to what his wife 
would be like, how she would dress, etc, The fact 



32 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

was, Mr. Phillips had taken a position in the village 
of Swampscott as one of the shrewdest, wealthiest, 
and most clever, besides being one of the most en- 
terprising, farmers who had settled in that part of 
vSwampscott village. He was looked up to by many 
upon important subjects. The farm-house was a 
one-and-one-half story house with an ell, having three 
rooms on the first floor, and two in the attic. In the 
course of twenty years, three additions were put on, 
and it was a pretty specimen of a farm-house home- 
stead. A soft green lawn, with green fields, on 
which were a few trees, sloped down from the eastern 
side of the house to a clean, shallow farmer's pond, 
where geese and wild ducks cackled and dabbled in 
the sparkling waters. The front door faced the 
southeast, and was approached by a short entrance 
from the old Lynn and Marblehead cart-path. 

" We sat within the farm-house old, 

Whose windows, looking o'er the bay, 
Gave to the sea breeze, damp and cold, 
An easy entrance night and day." 

Farmer Phillips kept summer boarders until 1S45, 
when he rented the house to Daniel Roberts, who had 
been living with him many years. The house was 
burned in 1867 ; it was built in 1640. 

BANKING INCIDENT. 

The following story was related to the writer by 
Ml". Roberts, who was living with Farmer Phillips at 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 33 



the time : '•'"Mr. Phillips was connected with a bank 
of long standing in Lynn, and the bank had prospered 
for many years, bnt at last came a singular event ; 
from some cause Micajah C. Pratt, the President, 
wanted Mr. Phillips to bring up all the bags of specie 
he had, for he anticipated a run on the bank. Mr. 
Phillips at once carried up the money, and informed 
Mr. Pratt that if need be he would mortgage his farm 
at Phillips Point to obtain a further amount for the 
same use. Mr. Phillips was then regarded as one of 
the wealthiest men in the East. 

The late General Sutton also referred to the same 
incident, relating the story to Rufus Kimball, of 
Lynn, substantially as follows : Micajah Pratt called 
at his house in Danvers, informed him that a run was 
expected on the bank the next day, and asked him if 
he could afford any assistance. General Sutton an- 
swered that he would see what could be done, and 
promised to " drive over" to Lynn in the morning. 
He then related his adventure to Lynn, in his old 
chaise, saying that he pulled up in front of the bank, 
where a large number of people had collected, and 
inquired if Micajah Pratt was in the bank. Mr. Pratt 
soon made his appearance, and General Sutton handed 
oat a large number of bags of coin, which Pratt, with 
the assistance of the bank officers, carried to the vault. 
The display of money was so formidable General 
Sutton said that the "run" ceased, and the crowd 
dispersed, satisfied that the bank was all right. Gen- 
eral Sutton said that he did not see Micajah for some 
7 



34 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

weeks afterward, but, meeting him one day, he said, 
"• Sutton, I wish you would come and take away those 
bags of gold; we have never opened them." ^' 1 
then told him," said General Sutton, "• that the bags 
were tilled with coppers, but I knew they would stop 
the run on the bank !" 

In this connection, the tbllowing is given in regard 
to savings banks: Joshua C. Oliver used to enjoy 
telling a story of a little Frenchman, in Philadelphia, 
who loaned his money to Oliver, because he thought 
him safer than the savings banks. A rumor got 
abroad that Mr. Oliver had failed, and the French- 
man went to his counting room one morning, under 
great excitement, and demanded his money. Mr. 
Oliver immediately filled a check for the amount due 
and handed it to his creditor. The Frenchman was 
surprised, and said : " Mr. Olivere, if you can pa>' me 
I do n't want the money, but if you can't, I want it 
(juick !" 

OLD FARM HOUSE. 

In 16S9, Captain Shubael Walker lived in a farm- 
house, near what is now Humphrey's Square. A few 
years since the old cellar and bricks were to be seen, 
and others were to be found in the soil, just below 
the surface. The late Jona. F. Phillips told me the 
following, which he said was told him by old settlers: 
" In the rear of the farm-house was a pig pen, and as 
the farmer's wife was looking from one of the farm- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 3') 



house Vv'indows, she saw a bear come from the woods, 
jump into the pen, capture a pig and escape with it to 
the thick woods on the hill (Clambake)." 

SAD OCCURRENCE. 

On the 1 3th of July, 1830, Joseph Blaney, Thomas 
Stone, John Proctor and Captain N. Blanchard, left 
Swampscott in the schooner " Finback," forty-two tons 
burden, for a fishing trip. When about twelve miles 
southeast of Minot's Ledge they anchored, and each 
taking a dory left the vessel, and when some distance 
apart began to fish. In a short time their attention 
was attracted toward Mr. Blaney, who was standing 
up in his dory waving his hat. At the same time 
they discovered that a huge shark was in the dory 
and was making vigorous efibrts to get back into the 
water. Captain Blanchard started at once for the 
scene, but suddenly the boat was overturned, and Mr. 
Blaney, boat and shark, disappeared from his view. 
The dory soon came to the surface, bottom up, but 
Mr. Blanev was never seen afterwards, and it is sup- 
posed he was devoured by the " man eater." When 
searching for the body a few days afterwards, a large 
shark was captured, which some supposed to be the 
one which caused Mr. Blaney's death. The shark was 
placed on exhibition in Boston. The dory was much 
damaged during the encounter. The following lines 
on the sudden death of Mr. Blane)-, were written by a 
contemporary poet : 



36 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



May this event a warning- prove 
To all the crew, and every friend ; 

May they adore the God of love, 
Who still from dangers will defend. 

Dark and mysterious are his ways. 

He gives, and takes but wliat he gives; 

At his command nature decays, 
And at his word revives and lives. 

Tliough hard to part with one so dear, 
To know he sleeps in ocean's bed; 

Yet, mourning friends, dry up tlie tear. 
His spirit for a while has fled. 

Vet, a few passing years at most. 
The earth and sea their dead give up, 

Then, at the rising of tlie just. 

Shall he appear with faith and hope. 



OLD BLANEY HOUSE. 

The old Blane}^ house, situated on Humphrey 
Street, and near Black Will's Cliff, was built by 
Captain Ralph King, in 1641, and was occupied by 
J. Blaney, in 1656. The house is still in good repair, 
and is occupied by three tenants. The front chamber, 
up stairs, is now used as a studio, and numerous 
sketches of vSwampscott and vicinity decorate its 
walls. In the southeast room may be seen the solid 
oak timbers overhead, about six inches below the plas- 
tering. There may be seen the outlines of a once 
large fire-place, in which an eight-foot log would look 
lonesome without others to keep it company, as thev 
blaze and crackle in the fire, 

" Wlierc glowing embers through the room — 
Teach light to counterfeit a gloom." 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 37 



Here also may be found an old-fashioned pitcher, 
the property of Mrs. Mary Bufton Archer Pierce, 
hearing the following inscriptions and decorations: 
Washington securing liberty to America ; Wisdom 
and Justice directing to Dr. Franklin — an oval- 
shaped scroll, in the centre of which are these lines : 

"O, Liberty, tliou Goddess, heavenly briglit, 
Profuse of bliss, and fragrant with deliglit, 
Eternal pleasures in thy presence reign, 
And smiling plenty leads thy wanton train." 

Outside the scroll are the names of the fifteen 
States of the Union — New Hampshire, Massachu- 
setts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New 
Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Vermont 
and Kentucky. This picture was brought home from 
England by Mrs. Pierce's grandfather. 

THE "bLANEY chaise. 

In the year 1S14, " Daddy " and " Marm " Blancy, 
rode to church, from the old Blaney house, whicii yet 
stands near Blaney's Beach, in an old, high, square- 
top, two-wheeled chaise, witli large windows in the 
sides, made to open with iron hooks, or braces, 
which gave it the appearance of having wings. It 
was a very stylish vehicle in those days, and no doubt 
the turn-out was deemed as gay in appearance and 
form as those belonging to the summer residents of 
the present day. 



38 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



THE FULLERS. 

In 1751, Mark Graves built a house on the beach 
side of Joseph Fuller's house, for Daniel Fuller, and 
Mark Phillips lived in it ; it now stands near the post 
office. [William Fuller's house w^as built in 1841, 
near his father's (Joseph Fuller), at Blaney's Beach. 
He afterwards went to Magnolia, Massachusetts, and 
sold the house to his son, Daniel W. Fuller. In 
1S67, Daniel W. Fuller, removed to Magnolia, and 
purchasing a large tract of land at the point, he built 
several cottages, and in 1877 erected the hotel near 
the shore, now so favorably known as the " Hes- 
perus," which will accommodate about one hundred 
guests. He was an energetic, liberal-minded busi- 
ness man, a warm friend and a good citizen. He 
was suddenly killed by falling down the shaft of a 
mine at Leadville, Colorado, February 19, 1880. 
The body was brought to Magnolia, and interred in 
the ftimily tomb.] 

ECHO LAKE. 

In former years, there was a large pond known as 
" Echo Lake," which has since been drained and im- 
proved, and now is known as " Thompson Meadow," 
on George Newhall's Beuna Vista farm, near vSalem 
line. The late Oliver Qiiestrom once told me it was 
great feeding ground for wild birds, and he often went 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 39 



there ofunnino-. He said the first time he fired his 
gun on the shore of this pond, there came across the 
water a sound so real, that he thought some one was 
on the opposite shore, firing towards him, so he 
shouted to them to be careful, while he went further 
along the shore. It was, as he soon found out, 
caused by the echo. After the pond was drained, 
there were found many bones of both rare and com- 
mon species of fish. 

RUius paurott's shoe shop. 

In 1S14, Rufus Parrott had a shoe shop in the 
upper part of his store, which was located near his 
house on Cherry Street, Upper Swampscott, then 
known as " Sodom." Here he employed all the shoe- 
makers in the neighborhood, which contained only 
seven dwellings. There were but twenty-five houses 
in the whole village at that time. Every vSaturday 
Mr. Parrott went to the Boston market and sold his 
goods. 

BIG GALE. 

A severe gale in ^September. 1S15, did great 
damage to trees and fences, and the spray of the 
ocean was carried a long distance by the wind. A 
house which was built in 1690, by Walter Phillips, 
Jr,, on what is now Lincoln House Point, w^as 
blown down in this gale. A new house was built ou 



40 HISTOKICAI. SKETCHES 

the spot, and occupied by W. A. Phillips ; at his 
death, it was sold and removed to a spot nearly half 
a mile towards the east. 

FIRST WOOLEN CARl'ETS. 

There was not a woolen carpet in the town or vil- 
lage in the year 1815, and sanded and white polished 
floors were to be found in every house. In iSiS, 
however, three woolen carpets appeared in Swamp- 
scott. They were earned by Mrs. Mary Seger, Mrs. 
Joanna Blaney and Mrs. Mary Weeks, who bound 
shoes at home to pay for these luxuries, while their 
husbands were away fishing. It is safe to say that 
not all the carpets of the present day are obtained in 
this manner. 

SLAVES IN SWAMPSCOTT. 

Jacob Phillips had a slave, and at his death he was 
buried in a lot at the east of the Phillips estate, at 
••' Beach BlutlV' so called, in 1884. 

ANTIQUE AND CURIOUS. 

Rev. W. H. Rogers has in his possession interest- 
ing historical relics. A cane made from wood taken 
from a house built in Plymouth, in 1698, on the estate 
originally owned by Governor Bradford. Apple 
seeds plucked from apple trees, which were planted 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 41 



in what was known as the " Old Bhick Orchard," in 
Plymouth, in the year 1670. These trees were plant- 
ed by Henry Cobb, who lived while Peregrine White, 
who was born in the Mayflower, in 1620, was still 
living. The trees were of the variety known as the 
high top sweeting, and were still bearing fruit in 
1882, after having stood for two hundred and twelve 
years. A human jaw dug up from Burial Hill, in 
Plymouth, in 1881, and supposed to be the jaw of an 
Indian, so pronounced by competent anatomists. 
Wood from the Washington elm, in Cambridge, 
under which Washington took command of the 
American Army, in 1775. 

Rev. G. A. Jackson has a piece of a mulberry tree, 
which he brought from Scrooby, England, the home 
of the Pilgrim Fathers before they went to Leyden. 
The tree grew in the garden of the old manor house, 
occupied by Elder Brewster, and is said to have been 
planted by Cardinal Wolsey, who once owned the 
estate. 

S. T. Beers has a double sugar bowl, an heirloom in 
the family since 1697 ; also a finely embroidered bag 
made by a miss of ten years, one hundred and six 
years ago. 

W. P. Martin has an ancient pair of gold balances. 

The family of Ebenezer Thorndike have two china 
plates, known to be more than one hundred and eighty 
years old. 

A chair formerly owned by General Glover, of Mar- 
blehead, who crossed the Delaware with the army of 
8 



42 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Washington, during the Revolution, was presented 
by him to Mrs. Hannah Phillips, and now is owned 
by her son, Mark G. Phillips. 

Captain Joshua P. Small has a plate which was on 
the " Corona," when she was wrecked at Cape Cod, 
in 1760. 

*The Stetson family have an arithmetic bearing the 
date of 1724, and said to have been used by General 
Washington ; a pin containing a lock of Washing- 
ton's hair ; a shawl one hundred and fifty years old ; 
a tumbler twQ hundred years old ; two spoons which 
were once the property of the celebrated Mo^l Pitcher. 

The family of S. C. Pitman have a painting repre- 
senting Salome, the daughter of Herodias, bearing 
the head of John the Baptist, on a charger. It was 
brought from England, by Judge Lynd, of Salem, and 
is a fine work of art. 

In 18S4, " Red Gables," the summer home of the 
authoress, Grace A. Oliver, at Phillips Beach, is 
perhaps one of the most unique along the north 
shore. "The large front door is of ancient work. 
The lock is about 8x12 inches, and the key reminds 
the observer of the famous " key of the Bastile," 
which now hangs in a glass case, on the south wall, 
in the old mansion at Mount Vernon. The house is 
filled with many articles of rare furniture collected 
from far and near. 

The writer has '' The New England Chronology," 
by Thomas Prince, M. A., printed by B. Edes and 
F. Gill, in King's Street, Boston, in 1754. The fol- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 43 



lowing is quoted from it: "Salem, June 12, 1630. 
The Governor, with these assistants on board the "Ad- 
miral," and some other gentlemen and gentle women 
go ashore to their friends at Salem. Many of the 
other people also landing on the eastern side of the 
harbour, and regale themselves with the wild straw- 
berries, wherewith the woods are everywhere in these 
times replenished." 

Daniel P. Stimpson has in his possession a Testa- 
ment handed down by his ancestors. Testament with 
annotations, etc., by Rev. S. Smith, D. D., published 
in London, England, 1737. 

James E. Alger has a large number of almanacs, 
bearing dates from 1763 to 1796, by Nathaniel Greene, 
printed and sold by William McAlpine, in Marl- 
borough Street, Boston. The almanac of 1794 has 
on its calendar page these lines : 



The husbandman contented smokes, 
Drinks cjder, reads the news; 

And cracks his nuts, and cracks his jokes. 
Himself and friends to amuse." 



GENERAL NOTES. 

The first paper money was issued in 1690. 

In 1727, on the 29th of October, a shock of an 
earthquake occurred. There was a sound as of a 
chimney on fire, the sea was violently agitated, and 
stone walls and chimneys were overthrown. 



44 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

The winter of 1740-41, was the coldest ever known 
in New England, and many cattle and sheep were 
killed. April 4, there were four feet of snow on the 
ground, and the ice was not wholly melted until 

In 1745, a house was built by N. Lewis, near 
Rowe's farm, now Beach Bluft'; a brook then ran 
through the farm to the ocean. 

December 9, 1755, a whale, seventy-five feet long, 
was landed at King's Beach. Dr. Henry Burchsted 
rode into his mouth in a " chaise," dravvn by a horse ; 
he afterward had two of the bones set for gate-posts, 
at his house on Essex Street, where they stood for 
more than fifty years. 

Many raccoons were shot at Swampscott during 
the year 18 14. 

In the first week in January, 1850, James Phillips, 
had five cats killed and skinned at one time, and the 
warm flesh bound to the body of his sick child, who 
was ill with the shingles, thereby effecting a cure. 

In 1S79, two tomahawks were unearthed on the 
E. B. Phillips farm, Swampscott, and proved to be 
interesting relics of the days of the red man. 



CHAPTER VI. 



THE SEA SERPENT. 



Seen in i6j8 at Cape A?t7t ; in lygj at ' Mount 
Desert; in l8ig^ 1820 arid 18 4g at Szvaiupscott . 



" I am tlie Ichtliyosaurian old; 

I lived in the world before the flood ; 
I 've caught indny a fisherman bold; 

Our tribe, though few, are of ancient blood. 
We roam the sea, as we roamed it, when 

Job and the Prophets roamed the earth ; 
Some of those wise and godly men 

Mention me. Since creation's birth 
I 've been king of the heaving sea. 

None dare dispute it; far and near 
The fishes all loolTup to me; 

I shall reign forever here." 

John Baktlett. 

That singular marine monster, the sea serpent, is 
said to have first made its appearance near Swamp- 
scott, in 181 9. We have accounts of its appearance 
as early as the year 1638, when, according to Lewis' 
History of Lynn, Dr. John Joslyn speaks of '' a sea 
serpent or snake, that lay quoiled up, like a cable, 
upon a rock at Cape Ann. A boat passing by, with 
English aboard and two Indians, they would have 



46 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

shot the serpent, but the Indians disswaded them, 
saying that if he were not killed outright, they would 
be in danger of their lives." 

In a letter to the Salem Gazette^ dated Portland, 
Maine, August 3, 1793, Captain Crabtree, who had 
lately arrived at Frenchman's Bay, and then at Port- 
land, says: "On the 20th of June last, being on m}' 
passage from the West Indies, in the morning, having 
just made Mount Desert Island, distant nearly ten 
leagues, I suddenly got sight of a serpent of an 
enormous size, swimming on the surface of the ocean, 
its head elevated about six or eight feet out of water, 
rather prone forward. That part of the body which 
was out of water I judged to be about the size of a 
barrel in circumference, but the head larger, having 
some resemblence of a horse's. According to the 
most accurate computation, which I made in my mind 
of his length, I think it could not be less than from 
fifty-five to sixty feet, and perhaps longer. That part 
of the body which was not elevated, but of which I 
had a distinct view several times, was longer than the 
part out of water ; the body of a dark brown." 

The same paper stated that " a party, well pre- 
pared, was to have sailed from Marblehead, on Satur- 
day morning, for the purpose of attacking this animal, 
which, by the last accounts, was near Kettle Island, 
a short distance this side of Gloucester harbor." 

In a letter to Honorable Judge Davis, James Prince, 
Marshall of this District, dating from Nahant, i\ugust 
16, 1 8 19, gives an account of the serpent, as seen 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 47 

from Long Beach, one view being so' near that his 
coachman, who was with him, exclaimed, " O, see 
his glistening eye !" 

Andrew Reynolds, Jona. B. Lewis, Benj. King and 
Joseph Ingalls, of Lynn, August 20, 1820, testified 
under oath as to what they saw of this serpent, the 
statement of Reynolds being as follows, and those of 
the others being corroborative : 

I, Andrew Reynolds, of Lynn, of lawful age, depose and 
say: That on Saturday, the fifth day of August inst., about 
I o'clock p. M., I discovered in the water, near Phillips 
Beach, at Swampscut, an animal different from any that I had 
ever seen before: he was Ij'ing on the surface of the water, 
which was at that time very smooth, and appeared to be 
about 50 or 60 feet long. Jona. B. Lewis and Benj. King, 
who work in the same shop with me, also saw him, and we 
took a boat and rowed towards him ; we approached within 
about 30 yards of him, and had a very distinct view of him. 
He had a head about two feet long, and shaped somewhat 
like an egg, which he carried out of the water when he was 
moving. There were several protuberances on his back, the 
highest points of which appeared to be seven or eight inches 
above the level of the water. He was perfectly black. When 
we first drew towards him, he was moving westerly from 
Phillips Point, and as we drew near to him, he turned and 
moved to the eastward, and when we got within about thirty 
yards of him he sank under water and disappeared." 

Francis Johnson, Jr., of Nahant, testified, July 12, 
1823, that in going into the harbor from Nahant, he 
saw " standing in to Lynn harbor something re- 
sembling a row of porpoises," and two hours after- 



48 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

wards, saw ''about four rods distant, something re- 
sembling the head of a fish or serpent. It then stood 
eastwardly, at the rate of five miles an hour, with an 
undulating motion, like that of a caterpillar; its color 
was dark, like that of a porpoise. I firmly believe 
what I saw to be the animal hitherto described as 
the ' sea serpent.' " H. A. S. Dearborn, Nathaniel 
Amory, Sidney Bartlett, Thomas VVhitmore, Richard 
D. Harris and Russell Jarvis certify to the veracity of 
Mr. Johnson, who was a fisherman then, twenty 
years of age. 

Later, various persons testify to having seen this 
monster, among them being the late B. F. Newhall, 
of vSaugus. In 1S49, John Marston, a fisherman of 
Swampscott, appeared before me and testified that he 
'•'• saw the whole body of the serpent, not the wake, 
but the fish itself." 

So endeth this chapter on the sea serpent. Proba- 
bly the stufied skin of this monster is never destined to 
adorn the walls of any museum, or his remains to 
repose in any pickle other than his native brine. 



CHAPTER VII. 



FISHING INTERESTS. 



Old Time Fishi)7g. — The Dove. — The Pinkeys. 
— The Jane. — Fishing Notes. — The Pin key 
Schooner Hornet. — The Swa?npscott Fleet. — 
Lobster Fishing. 



OLD TIME FISHING. 

''The Indians," says an old writer, '' thought the 
first ship was a walking island, and the masts were 
trees; the sails, white clouds; the discharge of ord- 
nance, thunder and lightning, which did much trouble 
them." After the ship came to anchor, they went in 
their canoes to explore the new island. 

Previous to the year 1795 no schooners were en- 
gaged in the fishing business at vSwampscott. The 
fish were very numerous near the shore, and the fisher- 
men went out from the beaches only in dories. 

In the winter of 1795, a few fishermen — James 
Phillips, Jonathan Blaney, E. Burrill, Beniah Phillips, 
Joseph Fuller and others — wishing to follow the fish 
to their feeding grounds, purchased a schooner called 
" Dove," of about twenty tons burden, 
9 



50 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



" The ' Dove ' lies tossing in the bay, 
How glorious seems the strang-er; 
With tapering mast and streamers gay, 
She dreams not now of danger." 

This schooner was engaged in the fishing business 
until the year 1797? when she was driven ashore near 
"New Cove" in a storm, and became a total wreck. 
Another schooner named " Lark," sixteen tons bur- 
den, was then bought, but during an October gale, in 
1799, she sunk near her moorings. A third schooner 
was secured and named for the first, " Dove." From 
that time to the present, the number of dories has 
greatly increased, and the lone "Dove" has given 
place to a fleet of first-class sea-going schooners and 
lapstreak whale-boats. Two or three hand lines, with 
one hook each to a man, were generally used until the 
year 1S57, when trawling was commenced, with six 
himdred hooks to each trawl ; now the number 
reaches in some cases as high as ten thousand hooks 
to a trawl. 

As far back as 1826, the Swampscott fleet num- 
bered six vessels, from twenty-seven to forty tons 
each, old measurement. These were all of the "pink 
stern " class, without bowsprit or jib, but instead 
stood a red stern-post, for luck, as a sentinel to guide 
the boat on her watery way. The boats were called 
"jiggers" at Swampscott, but at all other seaport 
towns in Massachusetts, they were known as " Che- 
bacco boats," named for the place where they were 
built, now Essex. A few years later, the jib was 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 51 



added to the two larger boats, the "Laurel" and 
" Leader," and they bore the high-sounding name of 
pink-stern schooners. 

From iSiS to 1842 very little improvement was 
made in constructing and modeling the fishing boats, 
as regards speed. Although ever}^ new vessel was 
thought to be perfect by her owners, skill and man- 
agement did more to bring out her sailing qualities 
than did any superiority of model. These boats 
were not built from any particular design, but by the 
eye, and from patterns of other vessels. 

Li 1S37, Thomas Southard, of Charlestown, Massa- 
chusetts, formed the idea of constructing a boat from 
a model of his own. Mr. Southard had worked on 
vessels for many years, but until then had never built 
one. He made what was called a " block model," 
about two and one-half feet long, from which he took 
his draughts and molds, laid a keel, and timbered up 
what was called a " skeleton model." Mr. Southard 
was very sanguine that his model was one for great 
speed ; the Boston pilots thought otherwise, when it 
was shown them. He vainly tried to interest them, 
and get them to assist him in building a pilot boat, 
but they ridiculed the whole thing, saying " there 
was no speed in such a model," etc. Nothing daunt- 
ed, he applied to Sears Brothers, of Duxbury (Ly- 
man, George and William), who were delighted with 
the model, and readily consented to build the vessel. 
These men were fishermen, and their business took 
them daily to the Boston markets in the summer 



52 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

season. Speed was highly necessary for the work. 
In the year 1837, ^^^^ keel of this vessel, destined to 
be celebrated, was laid at the foot of Captain's hill, at 
Duxbury. This hill derives its name from being 
once the property of the renowned Captain Miles 
Standish, who came over in the '^ Mayflower." Mr. 
Southard worked with the Sears Brothers until the 
vessel was planked, and then left them to finish the 
remainder. The brothers were real fishermen in 
every respect, but no mechanics, as might be known 
by the finish of the upper works of this boat. After 
being launched into her native element, she was a 
queer looking craft, straight as a plank on deck, her 
stern neither pink, square nor ellipse, but much re- 
sembling the heel of a last. In due time she com- 
menced her summer trips to Boston, where she was a 
source of amusement to all who saw her. She was 
named for the wife of her designer and master builder 
— " Jane." Many were the nicknames attached to 
this boat, the most prominent being '•' Hogs' Trough," 
but her good qualities were hidden and unseen, as 
she was soon to prove to the world, that she could 
'' walk the wears like a thing of life." The fame of 
the "Jane" soon spread through all Massachusetts 
bay, and especially in Boston harbor, where every 
one was astonished at the sailing qualities of the 
vessel. The pilot boats were obliged to succumb to 
the queer-looking craft, tlieir crews acknowledging 
their mistake regarding the model, and generously 
giving the "Jane" credit for all that was justly her 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 63 



due. No fishing vessel in the bay was ever more 
celebrated than the "Jane." The nicknames applied 
to her gradually wore oft', and she was looked upon 
with admiration wherever she went. 

In 1842, the "Jane" was bought by Swampscott 
fishermen. E. B. Phillips, who always had an eye to 
great speed in vessels, being the master spirit in the 
purchase. Another well-known Swampscott fisher- 
man was also eager to become her buyer, and when 
it was known that the "Jane" was for sale there 
was sliarp work between these two as to which should 
first close a bargain in the purchase. Mr. Phillips 
was the fortunate man, having just paid over the sum 
asked for her as the other party arrived on the spot 
to buy. One of the owners with Mr. Phillips took 
along his "pile" bound with a fathom of cod line, 
and he as well as the other owners, never regretted 
the investment then made in the "Jane." She was 
then run as a market boat the year round, and was a 
success, owing in part to her fast sailing. This suc- 
cess gave a new impetus to the enterprising fisher- 
men, and in a few years the entire fleet was revo- 
lutionized. The model of the "Jane" was a starting 
point, but soon several of the townsmen made models 
of their own, and to-day Swampscott fishing boats 
are noted for their stanch build and fine sea-going 
qualities. Report says that the tide ebbs and flows in 
the once renowned "Jane," at Kittery, Maine, and 
that mementoes are still sought for in the hull of this 
noted schooner. 



54 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Much credit is clue to Messrs. James A. Knowlton, 
Walter B. Lowell and Warren T. Small, for improv- 
ing the models of former days. Many dories, lap- 
streaks and seine boats are now built at Swampscott 
in the shops of Messrs. Small and Ivory Emmons. 



LOBSTER FISHING. 

Previous to the year iSoS, men and boys would 
wade in the water, amongst the rocks, and capture 
lobsters, which were very plenty in these days. About 
the year iSoS Ebenezer Thorndike invented and used 
a lobster pot or trap, the first used in the State, and 
began catching lobsters for the market. He then 
lived in the old " Story " house, recently removed 
from the lot now owned by Dr. Chase, on the corner 
of Story's Court and Humphrey Street. The house 
in its dimensions resembled a good-sized shoe shop, 
with a small chamber overhead, called the " quarter 
deck," which was reached by a ladder from the floor 
below. Here he sowed the seeds of industry, from 
which he reaped an abundant harvest. He was en- 
gaged in shoemaking, fishing and lobstering. For 
several years, commencing in 1817, Captain J. F. 
Story, W. Phillips (nicknamed "Red Head"), and 
Cyrus Washburn run a lobster smack to and from 
Charlestown, for Mr. Thorndike, who had a lobster 
market there. 

When Colonel Charles A. Stetson was proprietor 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 55 

of the Astor House, in New York, I forwarded to 
him a Hve lobster, which weighed more than twenty- 
two pounds, it being one of the largest ever caught 
at Swampscott. It was placed on exhibition at the 
hotel, and attracted much attention, both while of its 
original dark green color, and when it was changed to 
a bright red after boiling. 

A lobster, who had by years of patient toil and 
careful economy accumulated a snug sum of money, 
cast about him to see how he could use it to deserve 
the gratitude of the public. 

The codfish was found posting up his account 
books, and when informed of the lobster's mission he 
laid down his pen, and replied, "You have come to 
the right adviser, my friend. It is needless to inform 




COD FISH. 



you that for the last hundred years the cod has had to 
stay under the water most of the time on account of 
having no fit clothes to appear on shore. With that 
money we can rag out with the best, hold our heads 
with the highest, and we will no longer be quoted iq 
market at a low figure." 



56 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



FISHING NOTES. 

Fishing has been in former years the principal 
business of the inhabitants of the town, for they 
found, as their forefathers did, fish in abundance. 
Myriads of codfish sported in Massachusetts bay at 
the time of the settlement of the town. They were 
easily caught, and it soon came to be a lucrative busi- 
ness. A hardy and industrious race of men are those 
" who go down to the sea in ships." 

Cod, haddock, pollock, hake, a few halibut, mack- 
erel and other fish are caught by vessels sailing from 
Swampscott. The codfish was much sought for by 
the first settlers at Plymouth, and was one of their 
chief articles of food. It was an ancient symbol of 
the colony, and was used on the early stamps. Our 
free schools w(?re founded and nursed upon the pro- 
ceeds of cod fishing. Our early statesmen suspended 
a model of a codfish, fronting the Speaker's chair, in 
the State House. It was first placed there on motion 
of John Rowe, a member of the House, and who for 
many years supplied the fishermen with salt and fish- 
ing tackle. 

Deep-sea seining was commenced about the year 
1855 ; it is an interesting sight to see the fishermen 
cast their seine around a large school of mackerel. 

It has been remarked that the fishermen are always 
loyal and daring. It is said that it was a Marblehead 
fisherman who removed a British flag and hoisted the 
first American flag. Swampscott has had many of 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 57 



her sons in the several wars of the United States, and 
they did brave and noble service. 



GENERAL NOTES. 

John Thomas came to Sw^ampscott in 1836, from 
Duxbury, Massachusetts. He w^as a ship-builder by 
trade, but here he followed the vocation of a fisher- 
man. He died at the age of seventy-eight, leaving a 
large family. 

December 16, 1826, six schooners went out from 
Swampscott in the morning, and returned at night 
with fifty thousand pounds of fish, chiefly cod. 

Ebenezer Tarbox, of Swampscott, died August ii, 
1827, on board the schooner '^ Debenture," en route 
from Hallowell to Boston. 

About the year 1828, oil clothing began to take the 
place of leather, and in a few years, the old, heavy, 
bungling and expensive equipment, was known no 
more. One of these suits should have been pre- 
served, but there are none in existence to my knowl- 
edge. 

In the year 1832 there were ten small vessels, 
manned by eighty men, engaged in winter fishing, 
and about sixty dorymen in summer. 

In 1833, square-stern boats began to make their 
appearance in Swampscott, and the jib became a per- 
manent fixture with the whole fleet. 

In order that a fisherman might get his bounty 
money, it was necessary for him to have a sworn eer- 
ie 



58 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

tificate from the man who cured his cod fish, as fol- 
lows : "This is to certify that I have dried and cured, 

for Captain , two hundred and four quintals of 

fish, fit for exportation, caught and landed from the 
schooner , in the fishing season of ." 

One morning, while Captain Joshua F. Story, who 
has followed the fishing business for more than half 
a century, was fishing in his dory, near " Pig Rocks," 
he was suddenly made aware of the fact that a huge 
shark had thrust his nose up through the bottom of 
his boat. The shark quickly withdrawing from the 
position, left a large hole, through which the water 
poured. Captain Story, at once seizing his Russia 
Gauge frock, stopped the hole with it, and made it 
nearly tight ; his boat being nearly half filled, he bailed 
out the water, and then made his way home. 

In 1845, fish were very plenty, and their spawns 
were put in barrels and shipped to the foreign mar- 
kets, where they were used in the sardjjie fishery. 

In the year 1S4S, John R. Honors went fishing in 
the schooner " Woodside." One very rough day, 
while fishing in his boat, oft^ Tinker's Island, a heavy 
sea capsized the dory, throwing him into the water. 
Being clothed in his heavy fishing suit he could not 
battle successfully with the waves and sank twice. 
Just as he was going down for the third time Captain 
Douglass, of the schooner " Bell," reached the scene, 
and succeeded in saving him. Captain Douglass was 
keeper of the "lower light" in Boston harbor for 
many years, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 59 



Previous to the year 1S55, mackerel were caught by 
use of hand lines, each man using from one to three 
jig or fly lines ; but during this year seines for catch- 
ing mackerel were made for and used by the crews of 
the schooners "Flight" and "Romp," with good 
success. 

In the year 1S55, there were thirty-nine vessels en- 
gaged in the mackerel and cod fishing, aggregating 
one thousand tons. There were captured five thou- 
sand barrels of mackerel, valued at $50,000, also 
fifty-six thousand one hundred and sixty quintals of 
cod fish ; $6300 worth of cod liver oil was sold for 
medical purposes. 

A horse mackerel was caught August 20, 1855, 
which weighed one thousand pounds ; it was ten 
feet long, and six feet round in the thickest part. 

A sunfish was also caught oft^ Swampscott, which 
weighed two hundred and fifty pounds. 

In the year 1S56, the schooner "Flight" caught 
sixty-two thousand and- seven hundred pounds of cod 
fish in thirteen hours ; the schooner "Jane " caught a 
large trip, and twelve of her fish weighed on an 
average fifty-six pounds ; Captain Nathaniel Blanchard 
caught one cod, which weighed ninety-four pounds. 

Some of the fishermen began to use trawls in 1857. 
A trawl has from six hundred to ten tliousand hooks ; 
the lines are made of cotton. 

March 13, 1857, there were one thousand and six 
hundred pounds of haddock and cod caught by about 
one hundred men, in twelve boats, in six hours. 



60 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Blue fish were very numerous in the summer of 
1S58, and many menhaden were driven on shore by 
them. 

In August, 1S60, Chandler Lewis caught in his net 
a swing-tail shark, ten feet in length. 

In November, i860, as the schooner "Moonlight," 
Captain Blanchard, was about two miles from her 
mioorings, the topmast and part of the masthead were 
carried away, and a falling block striking William 
Phillips, 3d, on the head, caused his death. 

February 25, 1863, the Swampscott fishing fleet 
landed one hundred and fifty thousand pounds of fish 
on Blaney's Beach. 

February 25, 1S63, the " Flying Dart," with a crew 
of twelve men, brought in a fore of fourteen thousand 
pounds, and sold them for two cents per pound. 

In 1864, the " Minnehaha " caught oft' Boon Island, 
three hundred and fifty barrels, and " Flying Dart" 
one hundred and thirty barrels, of mackerel, in about 
four hours. 

Many a fisherman has experienced in a singular 
manner the vicissitudes of fisherman's luck, catching 
some days merely nothing, while on others they re- 
turn heavily laden. Truly, 'tis said the banks are in 
sound condition and free from the dangers .of sus- 
pension and failure. 

September 26, 1865, Augustus Story caught a 
halibut which weighed one hundred and ninety-four 
pounds ; he received $54.32 for his prize. 

February 28, 1867, the schooner "Cosmos," Cap- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. Gl 

tain Holbrook, caught thirteen thousand pounds of cod 
fish which sold at the rate of $1.90 per hundred, the 
largest cod weighing just one hundred pounds. 

In 1870, John Stanley caught, near Egg Rock, a 
halibut weighing one hundred and fifteen pounds, for 
which he received $15.00. 

P'ebruary 16, 1S72, the schooner "Champion," 
with a crew of twelve men, caught thirty thousand 
pounds of fish, which sold at four cents per pound ; 
the next day's catch yielded $73.00 per man. 

In the fall of 187S, the Swampscott fleet of seven- 
teen vessels and one hundred and fifteen men brought 
in one hundred and fifty-seven thousand pounds of 
cod fish, most of which went to the splitters, and the 
remainder to the Boston market at seventy-five cents 
per hundred weight. 

While J. G. Twisden was fishing in the bay in 
1S78, he lost his two pound lead and line, and, a few 
days afterward, fishing near the same place, he cap- 
tured the fish which deprived him of his tackle a few 
days before. 

In 1879, the schooner, "Alice M. Hawkes" brought 
in forty-nine thousand pounds of cod fish in one day. 

In 1880, Captain Henry Y. Hatch, while fishing 
in the bay ofi' Swampscott, caught a halibut weighing 
three hundred and sixty pounds. 

During the vSpring of 1880, many icebergs were 
seen in the distance by Swampscott fishermen. One 
man who has followed the sea for fifty years, said it 
was the coldest spring he ever knew. 



62 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

In iSSo, J. Porter Thomas, made seventeen trips 
after taiitog in two months, averaging one hundred 
pounds per trip, many of the fish w^eighing from ten 
to twelve and a half pounds each. 

In 1880, the scarcity of bait induced the fishermen 
to use the gill net in cod fishing. In April, 1632, 
weirs were placed in Charles River, three miles above 
Watertown, and a large number of shad were taken. 

In 1878, James Kehoe was found in his dory, 
ashore on Tinker's Island ; his body was found lying 
partly in the boat and partly on a rock. He expired 
soon after he was discovered. He was about fifty- 
two years old. 

In 1879, Captain L. A. Story, of the schooner "E 
Pluribus Unum," while on a cruise in the bay noticed 
a small fish swimming near the stern. A iiook was 
temptingly baited, but although the fish would smell 
of the bait, he would not take the tempting morsel. 
It proved to be a pilot fish, which are very scarce in 
these waters. 

The Fall school of large cod fish was unusually 
great in November, 1879, and was sold for ninety and 
ninety-two cents per hundred weight for splitting; 
thirty years ago they were sold at the rate of seventy- 
five cents per hundred. 

The schooner "Cosmos" took a fare of sixty-five 
thousand mackerel into Boston, during the mackerel 
season, stocking over $100 per man. 

A yellow cod fish was caught in 18S1, weighing 
thirty-five pounds. Nothing has been seen like it 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 63 



since the year 1S29, when a vessel Laden with coffee 
was wrecked on Shag Rocks. 

In September, 1S83, Isaac Newcomb, one of the 
crew of the " Zeppie," Captain Casey, caught an 
electric fish, and when taking it from the hook, re- 
ceived a severe shock which knocked him down. 
Warren Jaquith grasped the tail of the fish and also 
received a heavy shock. The fish weighed three 
hundred pounds. This fish is known as the cramp 
fish, torpedo or electric ray, the touch at which 
causes a numbness, tremor, and often sickness at the 
stomach. The "Zeppie" was built at James A. 
Knowlton's boat yard, Blaney's Beach, about thirty 
years, ago by Captain L. D. Story. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



ALONG THE SHORE. 



The Water from the Cliffs. — Egg Rock Light. — 

MinoCs Ledge L^ight. — The Beaches. — Big 

Whale. — Wrecks of the '' Tcdesco^'^ " Fred 

Bliss^'' and '■'• Vernon.'" — Escape of the '-'• Zotoff'' 

— Loss of '-'' Edward Heath''' — Notes. 



The chief delights of the visitor in Swampscott is 
found along the shore, walking or bathing on the 
beaches, or standing upon the cliHs, and looking out 
over the ever-changing waters. How the light flashes 
over the waves, chased by dark shadows ! What hues 
are sometimes seen ! 

The sea represents all the different colors of the 
rainbow. In shallow water the color is usually a 
dirty green, and as you proceed farther toward the 
middle of the sea it grows to a beautiful dark indigo, 
rich, and as one writer expresses it, a " color not only 
a form of beauty, conveying pleasure to the mind, but 
also having a use, like everything in nature," its color 
being such that one may look out on it without hurt- 
ing the eyes. Preceding a storm it is a dark purple 




EGG ROCK. 



SWAMPSCOTT. 65 



or gray. At sunrise or sunset the sea may be of two 
colors, one side a verdant green, the other a deep 
bhie. A white, sandy bottom gives the water a most 
brilliant emerald green. The sea about Magnolia is 
said to be like molten turquoise, lovely beyond des- 
cription. 

EGG ROCK LIGHT. 

** Egg Rock, like a sentinel, vigil is keeping, 
The fisherman gaily is casting his line, 
And many a sail, onward bound you descry, 
In sunlight and shade moving gallantly by." 

Egg Rock is nearly three miles south of Swamp- 
scott. It had been thought by the fishermen, for a 
number of years, that a light on Egg Rock would be 
of much service to them when entering and leaving 
the harbor by night, and to the mariner on his way to 
or from Boston harbor. At their request the writer 
drew up a petition to Congress to make an appropria- 
tion for the same. I vvas informed that the twenty 
schooners would be assessed to pay all expenses, and 
gave my time for the good of all concerned. John 
D. Bates, of Boston, then having a summer residence 
nt Swampscott, very kindly went with me to Robert 
G. Shaw, who was much pleased to head the peti- 
tion ; we visited about thirty Boston merchants and 
presidents of insurance companies, all of whom gladly 
signed it. Then I received the names of the fisher- 
men. I often visited the Lighthouse Board at Boston, 
for information, and found it necessary to have a map 
II 



66 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



of the site and Boston harbor to accompany the peti- 
tion to Congress. Alonzo Lewis drew the required 
map, noting the location of the Boston hghts and 
Egg Rock, charging me five dollars for the same, 
which I paid. The petition and map was forwarded 
by express to Congress in the care of Hon. Daniel 
P. King. Our representative was much pleased 
with the movement, and at once secured the neces- 
sary appropriation. Egg Rock was ceded to the 
United States; the lighthouse was built in 1856, and 
the first light was shown on the night of September 
15, 1856. A white light was used until June of the 
following year, when it was changed to a red one, 
which has since been of great service to the fisher- 
men of Swampscott, as well as our merchant ma- 
rine. The masonry of the house was by Plumer 
Chesley, and the carpenter work by Ira P. Brown, 
both of Lynn. 

The name " Egg Rock " was given in consequence 
of the vast number of gulls' eggs found there ; these 
birds congregating on its three acres in such numbers 
that immense quantities of guano are still to be found 
in all the depressed portions. It rises eighty-six feet 
above high water, so precipitously on all sides but at 
the west, that no landing is possible, save at one nar- 
row point. Compact fellspar constitutes nearly the 
entire petrified mass, and of this very handy material, 
with the exception of the door-sills and window-caps, 
the keeper's house is constructed. The house pre- 
sents a very neat appearance, having four rooms on 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 67 



the first floor, the second b*eing devoted to the fixtures 
and supplies for the light. The apparatus is the cen- 
tricular or Fresnel light, with one burner, two lamps 
being regularly used, one of them as a relay at mid- 
night. The peculiarity of this arrangement of light- 
ing mechanism is, by means of a single wick, only an 
inch across, and with a flame of just the same height, 
to illuminate an area of twenty miles radius in every 
direction. 

The view from the dome of the light, which is one 
hundred and seven feet above the sea, is very fine on 
a clear day, and the scene one of grandeur in a 
heavy northeast storm. The ponderous waves often 
jar the entire mass of rock, to such a degree, that the 
stove covers in the structure will rattle when the 
storm is at its height. Great improvements have been 
made in lighthouses since the first one was erected 
hereabouts on " Little Brewster," Boston harbor, in 
1 7 15-16, by order and at the expense of the General 
Court of the Province of Massachusetts. The cost 
was £2,385 17s. S.Jd., and was supported by taxing all 
vessels, excepting coasters, that passed in and out of 
the harbor, at the rate of id. per ton. In 1789, the 
United States assumed control of all lighthouses and 
paid the expenses without taxing the vessels. 

April 15, 1 85 1, a violent easterly storm commenced 
and continued to rage for two days. The wind blew 
a gale and the rain fell in torrents. A very high tide 
was occasioned, the waves sweeping over King's 
Beach, carrying a small building nearly across the 



68 HISTORICAT. SKETCHES 

road, and flooding the land back to what is now New 
Ocean Street. The most serious disaster was the de- 
struction of Minot's Ledge Light, which was swept 
away, together with two assistant keepers. The 
lighthouse was seventy-five feet high, and was thought 
to be of sufficient strength to withstand the fury of 
wind and wave. 

October i6, 1851, the British schooner '' Brothers" 
was wrecked by striking on the Outer Ledge, oft' 
Swampscott ; the crew, seven in number, were landed 
in safety. 

King's Beach, previous to 177^' ^^^ much larger 
than at this time. Travelers left the cart path at the 
easterly end of the beach, and went down the gentle 
slope to the beach, which was covered for a number 
of rods from where the street now is with beach 
plum and other bushes. The people crossed the 
brook on two large logs, with the knots left on to pre- 
vent them from slipping. Ebenezer Burrill and others 
petitioned His Majesty's Court of General Sessions of 
the Peace, held at Newburyport, Essex County, that a 
road might be laid out from King's Beach, near a 
brook (Stacy's) to a cart path, and through Fuller's, 
Lewis' and Bassett's land, two rods wide ; it was 
laid out in i77i' 

A road was laid out from Marblehead to Lynn in 
the year 1807, ^^^^ Humphrey and Orient Streets, 
crossing the brook to the old road laid out in 1771 
from King's Beach, which was made one-half a rod 
wider at that time. The road laid out in 1771 was 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 09 

widened at three separate times — in 1807, 1822 and 
1 841. Thousands of salt-water eels ascend the waters 
of Stacy's Brook for winter quarters, and return to 
the waters of the bay during the early Spring. Ben- 
jamin Andrews erected the first boat-house there, on 
land of Mr. Wardvvell, between Red Cottage and 
Stacy's Brook, about the year 1840. 

Many now living can remember the lively state of 
the Swampscott market, when teams from all the 
upper country would come here for their supply of fish. 
It was nothing unusual to see from fifty to one hund- 
red vehicles at the beach at a time, some of them 
from Canada, and drawn by four horses, which came 
to town from Boston, after their proprietors had 
purchased merchandise and loaded in that city. Such 
teams would be put up here and in the early morning 
would be started on the home trip. 

Blaney's Beach, one hundred and six rods in length, 
is one of the best in town. The fisherman lands his 
fish in dories, and they are carted up from the boats 
to the fish-houses in the winter, but often times in the 
summer the fish venders buy their fish directly from 
dories as they come in from the deep. Each boat- 
house has the name of its schooner on it. A stranger 
would be much amused and interested in the former 
appearance of the fishermen. The outside garments 
were of leather, the jacket being of sheep or goat skin, 
and the trousers of calf skin, with the dimensions of 
meal bags. The boots, called churn boots, weighing 
from ten to thirteen pounds, were of thick yellow 



70 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

cowhide ; the hat, or sou'-wester, was made of canvas, 
covered with a generous coating of tar, to make the 
hat water-proof; it had a very narrow rim in front, 
but one quite the opposite in the back — say six or 
eight inches — and additional to all this, car lappets 
of red baize, tied under the chin, covering almost the 
whole face. The fishermen looked about alike in 
their winter garb, and one could hardly be told from 
the other. 

THE fisherman's SONG. 

( Written by a school teacher i)i Sivampscott, about 1828.^ 

The fisherman shall be my theme, 

Whose life, though filled with toil and care, 

Is far more happy than a king's, 

Nor feels like him such slavish fear. 

They rise before the dawn of day. 

Early to reach the fishing ground; 
Through the wide sea they speed their way, 

Where fish do plenteously abound. 

Their little barks are often tossed, 

Upon the high and foaming wave. 
Sometimes, indeed, are almost lost. 

As through the briny deep they lave. 

These fishing boats do surely seem 

Almost as if they 'd go alone ; 
Propelled by " Perkins's boots,'' 

Perhaps their valor might be shown. 

With well-filled bucket on their arm, 

Prepared by wife or mother dear, 
They sally forth and fear no harm, 

While health and strength their spirits cheer. 

Then from their well-known sandy beach 

Emerge their barks, on ocean wide; 
What transport fills the heart of each. 

As through the trackless sea they 'glide. 

Then if the sea be calm and smooth. 

How pleasure beams from every eye; 
With songs the passing hours they soothe. 

As through the deep their lines they ply. 



OF SVVAMPSCOTT. 71 



Then late at night they sometimes stay, 
Nor stop to take the wislied repose; 

Just look at home and oft" they stray, 

While friendship in their bosom glows. 

But there are those who on the land 
For them some anxious moments fear; 

'T IS the endearing-, faithful band 
Of mothers fond, or sisters dear. 

The youthful maid oft looks abroad, 
And casts her eye upon the deep; 

The heartfelt wish is raised to God, 
That He will safe her lover keep. 

If storms should rise and winds should blow. 
How anxious then all hearts must feel; 

The rising sigh they oft bestow, 

And tears upon their cheeks do steal. 

But, hark ! their well-known voice is heard. 
And they approach, from danger free; 

A frugal feast is soon prepared. 
All hearts beat high in ecstasy. 



The names of the Swampscott fishing schooners for 
the last fifty years are as follows : — 

Hope, Fox, Dove, Leader, Laurel, Lillie, Reindeer, Lucy 
Ann, Little Essex, Big Essex, Finback, Little Mary, Three 
Friends, Ocean Traveller, Can't Come It. I Am Here, Striped 
Pig, Vixen, Harrison, Magnet, Harp, Haze, Hake, Convoy, 
St. Clair, Banner, Bonny Boat, Fancy, Spartan, Ariel, Ram- 
bler, Martha Jane, Ocean Bride, Wave Crest, Woodside, 
Lydia, Lucy, Susan, Romp, Yankee Maid, Factory Girl, Jen- 
nie, Angle Nora, James and Isaac, Coquette, Osceola, Lone 
Star, Moonlight, Eliza May, Fawn, Oval, Defiance, Cyrene, 
Neptune, Bird, Challenge, Sea Flower, Swampscott, Leo, 
Vanguard, Sea Serpent, Lark, Gazelle, Friend, Vapor, Me- 
teor, China, Iris, Glide, Village Bell, Lion, Jenny Lind, Lily 
Dale, E. B. Phillips, Charles A. Stetson, Jane, Flight, Eu- 
gene, Little Bonnie Boat, Flying Dart, Champion, Dart, 
Little Dart, Minnehaha, Alfaretta, Fairy Qiieen, E Pluribus 
ynum, Moll Pitcher, Emily C. Holder, Veni-Vidi-Vici, Nfi- 



72 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



poleon, Daniel C. Baker, Florence Nightingale, Gypsj Girl, 
Rover, Etta, Stars and Stripes, Carrie F. Roberts, Jehu, M. 
C. Hooper, Laughing Waters, Cosmos, Mary E. Story, Al- 
berta Story, Carrie Forrester, Lucy Devlin, Lillian Estelle, 
Golden Rule, A. C. Newhall, Clytie, Schooner D, James 
Bradley, George A. Upton, Alice S. Hawkes, Zeppie, Lizzie 
Ruby, Jeannie P. Phillips, Paul and Essie: sloop PoUie ; 
Acacia, Carrie E., Ettie, Flounce, J. W. Bradley, Nettie 
Adams, Norma, Nellie L. Pearce, Mary E. Hamilton, Jeannie 
B. Thomas, Zippa. 



THE BIG WHALE. 

In the year 1S3S, the schooner " Hope," of Swamp- 
scott, having on board a Cape Cod crew, William' 
Cole and a boy, towed into Swampscott a large whale, 
and landed him at the easterly end of Whale's Beach, 
whence it derives its name. Mr. Cole informed me 
that the whale measured seventy-four feet in length, 
but the blubber w^as so "candied" that only thirty- 
three barrels of oil were secured. The kettles were 
set under the willow trees near the " Little Anavvan" 
premises. The jaws were opened wide, so that a 
person could walk in and stand erect, but they had to 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 73 

return over the same road. Tents were erected near 
the spot, and crowds came from far and near to view 
the whale. The bones were carried away, one after 
another, as relics, by the visitors. 

January i8, 1857, occurred one of the severest 
storms ever known on this coast. The mercury was 
twelve below zero, and so much snow fell that travel 
was suspended for two days. In the midst of this 
terrible storm the barque " Tedesco," Captain Peter- 
son, of Portland, Maine, loaded with salt and wine, 
from Cadiz, Spain, struck on Long Rock, near Gal- 
loupe's Point. There were twelve men on board, all 
of whom perished. Six bodies were recovered, and 
buried at one time. The tierces of wine were scattered 
to the four winds, some of them washing ashore, and 
being appropriated; the "tasting committee" soon 
felt quite merry. 

In 1869, on a dark night, and during a heavy storm, 
the " Fred Bliss " was swept by the force of the wind 
and wave into a natural grove in the rocky cliti' at 
Galloupe's Point, clearing the ledge by a few feet, 
which had it. struck, all would doubtless have been lost, 
but as it was, they were enabled by a long plank to 
walk to the main land ; thus all on board were saved, 
and without a scratch. It was said that the wife of 
the captain was the coolest person on board at the 
time of the disaster. Captain Miles Blanchard has 
the piece of the vessel which bore the name "Fred 
Bliss.'^ 

In the year 1S59, ^^^^ barque "Vernon," of two 



74 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

hundred and sixty-five tons burden, struck on Long 
Beach, Nahant ; she was bound for Boston from 
Messina, with a cargo of oranges. The Swamp- 
scott life-boat, manned by the hardy fishermen, was 
launched, and all on board the vessel were saved. 
Some of the cargo was strewn along the beach, and 
many a person for once had all the oranges he wanted. 
Most of the cargo was saved ; the vessel was taken to 
Boston, for repairs. 

In the year 1859, February 2, the " ZotofiV' fi'om 
England, of and for Salem, came to anchor in a heavy 
storm within a cable's length of where the crew of 
the ""Tedesco" met their sad fate. The crew was 
taken oft' by the fishing schooner " Minnehaha," of 
Swampscott, and the vessel was rescued from its 
perilous position by a steamer from Boston, and 
taken to Salem. 

During a great storm, March 35, 1876, the schooner 
"Flight" broke from her moorings, and drifting on the 
rocks near the Lincoln House, became a total wreck. 
The " Alberta Story " went ashore on King's Beach, 
and was damaged about $1000. The "Minnehaha" 
also broke from her moorings, and struck the shore 
only a few hundred feet from the " Alberta Story," 
near Stacy's Brook, and was damaged about $2000. 
The "Clara Forrester" went on the rocks at the east- 
ern end of Black Will's Clift', and was a total loss. 
The " Champion" lost a fore boom, and the " Lizzie 
Roby," two dories, during the storm. 

On February 32, 1853, John Russell, Edward 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 7o 



Heath, and Jacob M. Lewis, went out fishing from 
Swampscott, in the schooner " Romp." While fisli- 
ing, the wind changed and blew furiously from the 
south-east. They weighed anchor and started for 
home, and after securing their moorings hoisted out 
a dory, putting into it about six hundred weight of 
Hsh. They then got into it and tried to reach Blaney's 
Beach, their usual landing place. While rounding 
Lincoln House Point, a heavy sea broke over them 
and sw\amped the boat, but it immediately rose to the 
surface, bottom up. The three men clung to it as best 
they could. Several times Mr. Heath was washed 
oft', but the last time he threw up his arms and sank 
to rise no more. Help came from the beach, and 
the other two men were saved, though Mr. Russell 
was in an exhausted condition. The next morning 
Mr. Heath's remains were found at the eastern end 
of King's Beach. 

During a heavy storm, March 28, 1849, Captain 
Zebedee Small and foui' others manned the life-boat 
and rescued the crew of the "James Harvey," 
wrecked hear Nahant, and landed them on shore in 
safety. This brave deed was noticed by the Massa- 
chusetts Humane Society, which caused a silver 
medal to be presented to each of the crew of the life- 
boat. Captain Small was born in South Orleans, 
Pleasant Bay, in the year 1815. 

In the summer of 1869, a writer to one of the Bos- 
ton papers wrote as follows: "Swampscott bay is 
before me. Immediately in front is the rock from 



76 HISTORICAT. SKETCHES 

which Lady Deborah Moody took her departure on 
account of her religious dissensions in 1643. To the 
right beyond ' Sculpin's Roost' is a row of fishermen's 
huts ; a short distance beyond that may be seen the 
British flag waving over the residence of the English 
Consul, but, even in its lofty height overshadowed by 
our own stars and stripes, as they float in the breeze 
from a flagstaff' some twenty feet higher, on the estate 
of Waldo Thompson ; farther on, backed b}^ the 
beautiful Ocean Street driveway, are beautiful res- 
idences owned by Boston's favored sons." 

In the winter of 1S3S occurred one of the most 
violent gales from the southeast ever known at Swamp- 
scott, and five of the eleven boats lying at their moor- 
ings were driven on shore with more or less damage 
to each. The gale commenced late in the afternoon 
and continued through the night. The boats that 
rode out the gale sustained some damage, and their 
small boats were smashed. 

In March, 1829, a schooner loaded witli coflee 
struck on Shag Rocks. It is said that the haddock 
devoured so much of the raw coflee that it caused 
their flesh to turn a greenish yellow. 

GENERAL NOTES. 

In the summer of 1839, while the writer was fish- 
ing from a dorv, ofl' Phillips Point, he saw, a few 
feet from the boat, a large shark as long as the dory. 
The memory of the fate of Mr. Blaney flashing over 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. / / 

his mind, made him give a sigh of relief when the 
huge fish, after surveying the situation, suddenly dis- 
ppeared from view. 

At the annual town meeting, held in Lynn, in 1842, 
t was voted to stop all persons from taking sea 

anure from the beaches on Sundays. 

In April, 1S2S, Paul Newhall was upset in his boat, 
while entering the harbor, near the inner ledge, and 
drowned. 

In February, 1S29, a great storm occurred, and 
several vessels belonging in Swampscott were driven 
to sea before tlie gale ; one of them went ashore at 
Chatham, where the crew sutlered from the extreme 
cold. 

The first lifeboat was delivered at Swampscott, in 
the year 1S46, by Captain R. B. Forbes. 

The schooner " Hornet" went ashore in a heavy 
storm on Long Beach, in the year 1S49. 

In September, 1S49, J. C. Lamphier, of Swamp- 
scott, discovered a turtle floating near the shore. It 
was towed in and a bullet hole was found in the l)ody. 
Its length from the end of the head to tip of tail was 
eight feet six inches ; the shell was six feet and six 
inches long, and three feet and six inches wide ; tlie 
turtle weighed six hundred pounds. 

Small pearls were found in large numbers in mus- 
sels, on " Dread Ledge," in the year 1S50. 

Henry Thomas shot a white-fciced seal ofl' Swamp- 
scott, August 3, 1854 ; it measured four feet in length. 

In June, 1852, Mr. Small, of Swampscott, and Mr. 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



Danforth, of East Boston, were capsized in their boat 
in a severe squall near Pig Rocks, and were drowned. 
Another man in the boat saved himself by swimming 
with the help of an oar, and was picked up by 
another boat nearly an hour afterwards. 

A Mr. Fenno went out fishing on the 19th of July, 
1S59, ^"^^ soon after his boat was found drifting with 
his hat in it ; his body was found floating near 
Whale's Beach. 

In a dark, stormy night in February, 1S60, two 
schooners were vainly trying to reach their moorings 
in Swampscott Bay. To aid them a fire was built 
with two barrels of tar, and with this for a guide they 
safely reached anchorage. 

In 1861, the schooner " I Tell Ye " broke from her 
moorings and went ashore on Whale's Beach ; she 
was valued at $1100, and was sold at auction for 
$300. The schooner ''Electric Spark" also went 
ashore on Blaney's Beach, and was got ofl'with little 
damage. As the life boat was returning from the 
'' Electric Spark" it was upset, and its occupants were 
thrown into the sea, but they all escaped. 

January 17, 1S63, the tide was the lowest known 
for many years ; one could comfortably walk around 
Black Will's Clift: 

February 13, 1863, the sea appeared to be boiling 
hot, the vapor rising in clouds, presenting an interest- 
ing sight. 

In March, 1864, the beacon on Dread Ledge, an 
obelisk of granite twenty-four feet high, and three 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 79 



feet square at the base, was broken off near the cen- 
tre, in a gale wliich histed four days, and the sea was 
very high. 

While a number of parties were out in the bay 
August II, 1S65, a sudden fog shut the shore from 
their view, and they did not return till the next day. 
One party landed at Egg Rock and were well cared 
for by the keeper. 

In the summer of 1S70, a great regatta took place 
olf Swampscott, participated in by New York, East- 
ern, and other club yachts. 

Thousands of people come to stroll along the 
shores and beaches of Swampscott, and many re- 
marks are doubtless made by admirers of the scenes 
stretched before their vision, but what can be more 
truthful than that of a little girl of five years, watch- 
ing the waves as they beat the shore — "See the waves 
play catch." • 

The beaches of Swampscott were thickly strewn 
with sun or jelly fish, one summer morning in 1871. 

A gentleman spending a few weeks at Swampscott 
caught three bass, weighing about sixty pounds, while 
fishing for nippers ofi' Galloupe's Rocks. 

In 1872, while a Mr. Cleveland was fishing from 
G. W. Harris' pleasure yacht, near Dread Ledge, he 
caught a tautog weighing eleven pounds and ten 
ounces. 

A. F. Nesbitt caught a switchtail shark, whose 
total length w^as thirteen feet, August 24, 1874. 



80 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

•• Sharks generally turn on their sides to eat, 
Though they never go back on their meals." 

The schooner ''Alberta Story " was wrecked De- 
cember 2, 1S7S, at the foot of Wave Street, Lyr.n, 
and was a total loss. 

During the evenings of September, 1877, the phos- 
phorescent light was to be seen along the beaches, as 
the waves broke and dashed on the shore. Many per- 
sons visited the shore to witness the beautiful sight. 

August 7, 1SS2, Charles Merritt and Michael Ryan, 
while bathing near Black Will's Cliff, rescued a boy 
named Stephen Morris from drowning, he being at- 
tacked with cramp. They were each presented with 
a silver medal by the Massachusetts Humane Society. 

Two large whales were seen off Swampscott, No- 
vember 30, 1S73. 



I 



CHAPTER IX. 

POLITICAL AND OTHER xNOTES. 

Great Democratic Clam Bake. — Encampment of 
the Second Brigade. — Big Boot. 



The sixth of September, 1S44, is a day of much in- 
terest in the annals of Swampscott. An assembly of 
at least twenty-five thousand people came together in 
the interests of the presidential campaign. The Dem- 
ocrats present exceeded by thousands the most san- 
guine hopes of the promoters of the enterprise. 
Large numbers of ladies were present, besides a gen- 
erous sprinkling of boys and girls. About three 
thousand people came from the City of Boston. The 
Lynn station of the Eastern Railroad was the place of 
rendezvous. It was found, on organization, that 
more than twenty towns were represented. The 
buildings, public and private, were profusely decora- 
ted with flags and banners. The procession was 
formed under the direction of Caleb M. Long, Esq., of 
Lynn, who acted as chief marshal on the occasion ; it 
was about a mile in length, and banners bearing the 
inscriptions, "Polk and Dallas," "Equal Laws and 
Equal Rights," etc., were proudly borne at its head. 



82 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

The head of the procession reached the objective 
•point, Clambake Hill, Swampscott, at 13.30 o'clock. 
This hill was admirably adapted for the purpose in 
every respect. It commanded delightful views of the 
sea and surrounding country, and on the broad bosom 
of Massachusetts Bay could be seen vessels of all de- 
scriptions. 

The escort of the procession was composed of some 
of the finest military organizations of the day : the 
" Hingham Riflemen," Captain A. B. Ingalls, lead- 
ing, and followed by the " Salem Artillery," Captain 
Rhodes, " Marblehead Infantry" and the '^ Lynn 
Artillery," Captain Gale, accompanied by bands. 
Next came the hardy and indomitable Swampscott 
fishermen, wearing red shirts and tarpaulin hats, and 
carrying two banners ; this feature of the procession 
was the most unique and interesting of the whole line. 
The Lynn banner was of large size, and those from 
other places %vere of much interest. After the arrival 
of the procession, it was found that fires had been 
lighted in seven large ovens, each thirty feet in cir- 
cumference, for roasting clams, of which there were 
one hundred and seventy barrels provided, together 
with one thousand lobsters, and many other things 
necessary to supply the wants of the multitude. The 
stage erected for the orators was a beautiful afiair, a 
sort of rural temple, dedicated to the genius of De- 
mocracy. It was covered with evergreens, and be- 
decked with garlands, wreaths and flowers, which 
aflbrded an agreeable shade for the speakers. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 83 



At one o'clock the assembly was called to order, 
and J. C. Stickney, Esq., of Lynn, was unanimously 
chosen president of the day. On taking the chair, he 
gave an eloquent address, and then introduced Hon. 
Robert Rantoul as the orator of the day, who deliv- 
ered a characteristic speech to an attentive and ap- 
preciative audience ; he was followed by other speak- 
ers. One of the toasts given on the occasion was as 
follows: "The Democrats of Swampscott — Men of 
sterling worth, and true friends to the people, ever 
ready, when duty requires, to march shoulder to 
shoulder to the polls and vote for honest men and lib- 
eral measures ; but the dread of all those who vote 
for corporations, log cabins, hard cider, and last but 
not least, the ' Mill Boy of the Slashes.'" 

The clam bake was a great success, and the memor}- 
of September 6, 1844, will long live among the sur- 
vivors who attended it as one of the glorious as- 
semblages of the old Bay State. 

In August, 1871, the Second Brigade, M. V. M., 
encamped in the fields adjoining what is now Atlantic 
Avenue, Swampscott, and greatl}' enjoyed the cool 
sea breezes. During the encampment an amusing 
presentation took place at headquarters. One morn- 
ing a large box arrived in camp addressed to Adjutant 
General James A. Cunningham, in camp at Swamp- 
scott, and was accordingly placed in his tent. The 
presence of this box and its unknown contents caused 
much wonder in camp, and many were the surmises 
concerning it. In the evening of that day. General 



Si HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Cunningham presented to Major Sutton, Assistant 
Inspector General on General Pierson's staff, an 
elaborately decorated wheelbarrow, bearing on each 
of the sideboards the monogram of Major Sutton. 

The speeches of the donor and recipient were most 
laughable, and were hugely enjoyed by the party pre- 
sent, which was not a small one. It appears that 
General Cunningham, Major Sutton and Colonel 
Hobart Moore, were a commission to test breech- 
loading muskets, and to try them they went to Major 
Sutton's residence at North Andover. Here a wheel- 
barrow was used to convey the ammunition and 
target to the place of firing, and then the wheel- 
barrow was used to support the target, and whether 
the target was not large enough, or the wheelbarrow 
was too large, it turned out, on examination, that the 
bullets had damaged the wheelbarrow so much as to 
render it unserviceable, and as General Cunningham 
had done the most execution in that direction, he 
thought he must make the loss good, hence the pres- 
ent. 

Wheelbarrows afford a means of cheap transporta- 
tion, Silas Pierce used one to deliver goods when he 
first went into the grocery business in Boston. 

A lady once purchased a lemon at a store on Broad 
Street, Lynn, and requested that it should be "sent 
home." The enterprising storeman at once followed 
her out, locked the door, and taking his wheelbarrow, 
delivered the lemon at her liouse, as soon as she 
reached home. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 85 



One morning in August, 1879, Frank Blaney, a 
grandson of Mr. Blaney, who was killed by a shark, 
July 12, 1S30, was fishing with his mate in a dory ofi' 
Swampscott, when they captured something resem- 
bling a fish, the name of which none knew, and the 
oldest fisherman could not remember ever before see- 
ing anything like it. It was decidedly unlike any 
other specimen ever caught in the bay. It weighed 
three hundred and sixty pounds, was rather flat, the 
greatest thickness of the body being about eight 
inches ; it was a dark brown color, its length was three 
feet one inch, and width four feet, and near the nose 
three feet two inches across ; the tail resembled that 
of a shark ; the eyes were very small and about four 
inches apart; the mouth was eight or ten inches in 
width ; the belly was a greyish-white, the fins rather 
small. Altogether, it formed one of the most curious 
specimens of the piscatorial tribe ever seen in the 
waters of the bay. Perhaps it was — 

" A creature not too bright or good 
For human nature's daily food," 

In 187S, D. Holman Millett, of Swampscott, man- 
ufactured, at the wood-turning establishment of J. 
Otis Marshall, Broad Street, Lynn, a boot of mam- 
moth proportions, furnished upon an order of John 
Mahon & Sons, for parties in South Carolina. It was 
used as a sign, and was placed upon wheels for a po- 
sition on the sidewalk. This boot measured four 
feet two inches from the sole to top of leg, and seven- 



86 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

teen inches across the leg ; length of sole, three feet 
eight inches, and width fourteen inches. One hund- 
red and thirty-three feet of three-inch plank were used 
in manufacturino: the larsfe-sized boot. 



GENERAL NOTES. 

In 1826, the population of the village of vSwamp- 
scott, then known as Ward One, L}nn, was: males, 
123; Females. 120; total, 243. 

The first '^ Swampscott Lyceum " was formed in 
the year 1832, by a number of gentlemen who associ- 
ated themselves together, and secured a coinse of lec- 
tures on popular subjects. These lectures were given 
once a week in the school house, and were well at- 
tended. 

In the year 1832, Thomas Bartlett, Jr., kept a 
grocery store at Blaney's Beach, opposite the tavern 
kept by Ebenezer Weeks. 

Mr. Durant made a balloon ascension from Boston 
Common, August 10, 1S34, at 6, p. m., and one hour 
later, he was picked up by a vessel, fourteen miles 
east of Swampscott. 

George Thompson, a prominent English abolition- 
ist, lectured in L3'nn to a large crowd late in the 
Summer of 1835, on the subject of " Slavery." After 
the lecture, to avoid them, he passed out through a 
window, on a slide to the ground, and went to his 
temporary boarding place in Swampscott. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 87 



In the year 1S40, Burrill Street was laid out from 
Essex Street to Humphrey Street. Previous to that 
time there was a cart path extenxling through that 
locality, and travellers with a team found it necessary 
to open and shut six gates and bars while going from 
one street to the other. 

'' Red Cottage," on Humphrey Street, since re- 
placed by the stable of the Lynn and Boston Railroad 
Co., was devoted to the raising of ducks and chickens, 
about the year 1840, under the care of Joseph Hill 
and brothers, there being at one time as many as three 
thousand ducks and two hundred chickens kept there. 
Additions were afterward made, and the whole fin- 
ished into tenements, and it still kept the name of 
the '' Duck House." 

Captain William Galeucia's house was moved to 
its present location soon after Burrill Street was laid 
out in 1S40, from the opposite side, near Mudge's 
gate. 

The year 1S40 was made famous by the '' Hard 
Cider Campaign." It was one of the most exciting 
campaigns of the country. A mammoth tent was 
erected near the old "'' Ingalls" house by the Demo- 
crats of Swampscott, and an enthusiastic assembly 
was addressed by Hon. Robert Rantoul and others. 
Hon. Cyrus Washburn, Ebenezer Wrecks and Thomas 
Stone were the prime movers of the occasion. 

When the town school committee, in 1844, visited 
the school on Humphrey Street, one afternoon, all 
went well until the class in arithmetic was called, 



88 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



when the question, " How much is three and two?" 
was asked of a bright boy at the head of the class. 
The astonishment of all may be imagined when the 
confused boy replied that he " had not ciphered so 
far as that." This illustrates how little it takes to 
confuse the young mind during the dreaded examina- 
tions. 

In 1S44, a travelling photographer's wagon re- 
mained for several weeks in the vicinity of '' Black 
Will's Cliff,'' ^^nd met with quite a lucrative trade. 
One maiden lady came and had her picture taken, 
but she was not satisfied, as she thought it looked too 
old, etc. She sat seven times without success, as she 
thought ; the eighth time the artist brought out a 
picture of a much younger and prettier lady, which 
she, thinking it was her own likeness, and correct at 
last, took away with her, much to the artist's amuse- 
ment. 

In 1S49, '^ k'li'ge niunber of men left Swampscott 
and vicinity to seek their fortunes in California. 
Among the number were Jonathan Blaney and 
Ephraim A. Ingalls. They started in February, and 
after a five-months' tramp across the plains via 
Mexico, arrived in the land of gold. Captain Miles 
Blanchard and Hugh Douglass took passage in the 
" Argonaut," six hundred and forty tons, from Boston 
to San Francisco, which place they reached in safety. 
They remained but a short time, and then returned. 
The late Captain Thomas Hadley spent many years 
of his life in California. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 89 

The organization of the first city government of 
Lynn, of which Swampscott was then a viHage, took 
place May 14, 1S50, and Swanipscott was under a 
city form of government from that time until May 21, 
1S53, when it was incorporated as a town. 

David C. Proctor, of Swampscott, killed forty grey 
scjuirrels and three foxes, in three days' hiniting in 
Lynn woods, in the year 1S56. 

In August, 1856, John Blaney's house was struck 
hy lightning, though but little damage was done. 

July 7, 1S56, an eight-year old son of W. A. Ward- 
well, of Swampscott, was drowned near the easterly 
end of King's Beach ; the body was recovered by 
J. A. Knowlton. 

One day in 1S56, Captain Nathaniel Blanchard lost 
his small tin dipper overboard ; a few days after, 
when fishing near the same place, he caught a large 
cod fish, and recovered his dipper, which the fish had 
swallowed, doubtless taken for a dainty morsel. 

In 1853, Amos Goidd, Wenham, made a pair of 
fishermen's churn boots which when finished weighed 
thirteen pounds. They were for sale by the writer in 
his store. A pair were exhibited at the Mechanics' 
Fair, held in Boston, over Qiiincy Hall Market, and 
were awarded a medal. 

June 13, 1857, Captain Fuller's barn was burned ; 
the fire was caused by two little boys, who were play- 
ing with matches in the hay. One of them, a son of 
James A. Knowdton, aged four years and a half, was 
burned to death. 
14 



00 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

July 4, 1857-. Henry Scales and John Diaper were 
fatally injured while engaged in firing salutes with an 
old cannon ; they died a few days after. 

Joseph L. Hill, aged twenty, was accidentally 
killed while gunning at Swampscott, by the prema- 
ture discharge of a fowling piece, March 3, 1S5S. 

x^ugust 6, 1S58, a barn belonging to Jonathan F. 
Phillips was struck by lightning and burned, together 
with fifty tons of hay. The well-known trotting 
mare, ^ Lady Lawrence," valued at $1000, was killed 
by the lightning. Mr. Phillips informed me that in 
those days there was no necessity for locking the 
doors of the barns and houses, and the salted fish 
coidd be left to dry on the flakes all night without 
fear of their being molested, — a thing which could 
not be done in these days of thieves and tramps. 

A beautiful comet made its appearance in the 
heavens during the autumn of 1858, and it was esti- 
mated that the tail was fifty-one millions of miles in 
length. 

October 13, 1858, the first electric telegraph line 
was completed to Swampscott. An oflice was opened 
in the store of Waldo Thompson, and Miss vSmall was 
installed as operator. On Monday, March 17, 1884, 
another telegraph line was completed, connecting the 
houses of Warren Atkins and Waldo Thompson in 
Lynn, with Jefl^ers' drug store in Swampscott, there 
being seven instruments on the line. 

There was a total eclipse of the moon early on the 
morning of February 17, 1^59. A large humpback 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 91 



whale was seen near the shore on the same morn- 
ing. 

In December, 1859, Charles Rowell killed his hog 
which weighed, after being dressed, six hundred and 
two pounds. 

There was a great strike among the shoemakers of 
Lynn and Swampscott, in February, 1S60, and a 
large procession of strikers passed through town. 

In April, 1861, Dr. Jacob Porter enlarged his 
apothecary store in Widger's Block. 

New Ocean Street was laid out by the County 
Commissioners, from Ocean Street, Lynn, to Burrill 
Street, Swampscott, in the year 1S65. 

In 1S65, when the news of the assassination of Pres- 
ident Lincoln was received in the town, one person 
was so indiscreet as to manifest his approval in such 
terms as to kindle the wrath of his townspeople, who 
seizing him, covered him liberally with a coat of tar 
and feathers and carried him through the town. He 
afterwards brought a civil suit before Judge Gray, of 
the Supreme Judicial Court, and was av^^arded $800 
damages. 

July 4, 1867, a balloon ascension was made from 
Lynn Common ; after floating for a while in the air, 
the balloon suddenly descended into the waters of 
Swampscott Bay, when it was rescued by a boat near 
at hand. 

The "Watermelon Club" was organized July 5, 
1S67, and numbered about thirty persons; they have 
an excursion every year on the fifth of July, going in 



92 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Captain Douglass' yacht, and generall}^ making for 
the fishing grounds for a few hours, then visiting some 
point of interest on the coast. A good dinner and the 
election of officers are two of the features of the trip. 

In 1S69, a blue heron was shot in what was known 
as the '•'■ forty-acre woods," Swampscott. This bird 
is very rarely seen in the woodland of Massachusetts. 
Its height, when standing erect, was about four feet, 
while it measured fi\e feet from tip to tip of its 
wings. 

In 1S70, one warm summer afternoon, a gentleman 
being desirous to know how many people passed the 
store of Holden & Lee, on the corner of Redington 
and Humphrey Streets, counted them for two hours, 
beginning at 5.30, p. m., and obtained the following 
result: Number of persons, one thousand six hundred 
and eighty-six, of which nine hundred and seventy 
passed during the last hour, or an average of sixteen 
per minute ; number of carriages, five hundred and 
twenty-six. This was not an unusual occurrence dur- 
ing the warm, summer months. 

While a son of Richard Horton, of Swampscott, 
was crossing the meadow between new Ocean Street 
-and Humphrey Street, May 25, 187S, he was struck 
and wounded in the head by a large shot, fired by 
some unknown party, but fortunately it proved a 
slight wound and he soon recovered. 

In 1884, Mark G. Phillips had a cow that took the 
lead of any we have yet heard of. In three luind- 
red successive days the cow yielded four thousand six 






OP' SWAMPSCOTT. 9S 

hundred and sixty-six quarts, an average of fifteen 
quarts, one pint, and a fraction per day. 

In January, 1879, N. A. Cahoon shot a bald- 
headed eagle, on Blaney's Beach. The bird weighed 
eighteen pounds, and measured six feet nine inches 
from tip to tip, and was sold for the sum of $8. 

The first death in 1876 was that of William D. 
Rowe, which occurred in Januar\' ; he was ninety- 
four years of age. The last death in the year was 
that of Ebenezer Thorndike, in December; his age 
was nearly ninety-four years. Most of the deceased 
were adults of fifty years of age or. upwards. 

In 1877, there was a peculiar litter of kittens in 
Swampscott, one kitten having no tail, one a mere 
stub, and the other a tail long enough for the three. 

Januarv 8, 1876, the first number of the Swamp- 
scott Enterprise was published. 

The Town Hall was illuminated with gas for the 
first time in 1878. 

A very successful " Higliland " party was given in 
the Town Hall, by ladies of the Congregational 
Society, on Monday evening, January 20, 1878. 

In May, 1880, a thunder storm of great severity 
visited this section, and tlie lightning struck in nine 
places in the town. A house on Burrill Street, occu- 
pied by A. W. Larkin and fiunily, was considerably 
damaged, but although there were people in the 
house at the time, none were injured. The Baptist 
Church was struck, but only slightly damaged. The 
liorhtningf striking the house of Colonel Farwell, went 



94 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

into the cellar, and made a hole in the cistern, caus- 
ing the water to run to waste. A large hole was 
made in the bank of a brook which runs through 
Paradise Road, and the old farm-house on the Mudge 
estate was also struck. 

During the year 1881 many people were inquiring, 
" Have you seen the land tortoise on Clambake Hill?" 
The size of this tortoise, as told by a resident of the 
hill, was enormous, being three feet in height, five 
feet across, and ten feet from the tip of the nose to 
the tip of the tail. 

On Saturday afternoon. May 14, 1881, the horse 
cars commenced their trips to Mudge's Square, in 
Swampscott. 

In the summer of 1881, Captain Thomas Stanley 
raised in his garden six stalks of sunflowers which 
were eleven feet and six inches high, the six stalks 
bearing two hundred blossoms. 

The Watermelon Club took their annual sail on 
July 5, 1S81, the party numbering about twenty-five 
persons. 

On Monday, September 16, 1883, union memorial 
services were held in the Methodist Church, Swamp- 
scott, in memory of the President, James A. Gar- 
field ; the principal address was made by the Rev. 
J. B. Clark. Hon. E. R. Mudge presided. 

On the evening of September 6, 1882, a large 
house, known as " Hillside," the property of Jonathan 
Blaney, was totally destroyed by fire. It was insured 
for $6000. Hardly had the fire been extinguished 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 95 



when a second alarm was given, caused by fire break- 
ing out in the Ocean House, situated on Orient Street, 
near Whale's Beach. It was a frame building, and 
well known among the visitors to the seashore ; the 
loss amounted to about $60,000. The Lynn Fire 
Department rendered efficient aid at both fires, and 
thousands of people came from far and near to wit- 
ness the sight. 

In August, 1882, a three-story building, occupied 
by Levi Nickerson as a dwelling-house and oil-cloth- 
ing factory was set on fire by a kettle of tar boiling 
over on the stove. A girl about sixteen years old, 
named Emma Stone, employed in the family, at- 
tempted to extinguish the flames, and was severely 
burned, from the effects of which she died. A boy 
named Harry McCabe entered the burning building 
and rescued a baby of Mr. Nickerson that was asleep 
on a bed. The building, behig of wood, and so much 
oil being in it, was quickly consumed, although the 
Lynn Fire Department quickly responded to an appeal 
for help. 

In 1 882, the Swampscott Tubular Well Company 
sunk twenty tubular wells to a depth of thirty feet; 
eighteen of these were connected to a main pipe, and 
the discharge during twelve hours averaged four 
hundred gallons per minute. The promoters of the 
enterprise proposed to supply the water to the 
town. 

There were three hundred and sixty-five houses in 
Swampscott in 1871- 



96 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



REPRESENTATIVE MEN. 

Hon. Ebenezer Burrill was a member of the 
Crown Governor's Council during the years i73i~ 
1740. Hon. Ebenezer Burrill was a representa- 
tive from the district of Lynn and Swampscott, from 
1738 to 1 73 1. Hon. E. Redington Mudge was 
Senator one year; Jonathan F. Phillips was Repre- 
sentative one year ; Eben. N. Wardwell, two ; Samuel 
C. Pitman, one ; Janes K. Snow, one ; John C. 
Stimpson, two ; Francis E. Andrews, one ; John 
Stone, one; Cyrus Washburn, 1865-66; Samuel 
Otis Ingalls, 1885. 



CHAPTER X. 

CHURCHES, REFORM AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES. 

First Congregational. — Methodist. — Disciples of 
Christ. — Baptist. — Unitarian. — Episcopal. — 
Universalist Sunday School. — Good Templars. 
— Reform Clnb. — Women^ s Christian Temper- 
ance Union. — Szvampscott Watchers' Society. 



Previous to 1S45, there was no established church 
in the viUage of Swampscott, then a part of Lynn. 
The people of different denominations enjoyed only 
occasional gatherings, for religious worship, in the 
school-house on Humphrey Street. Many of the in- 
habitants attended church in Lynn, while more ab- 
sented themselves from the house of worship, pre- 
ferring rather to commune with the works of nature 
in the neighborhood of their homes. Of the latter 
class a writer once said, in speaking of a certain 
fisherman — " He visits his chair each Sabbath, and 
spends several hours in gazing upon the sea and land, 
from Black Will's Cliff. He called the place his 
church, where he worships all creation. A little girl 
remarked to this worshipper — ' If that is your 
church, what do you do for singing.^' 'Oh,' said he, 
15 



98 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



' I have the sparrows and crickets.' ' Well,' said she, 
' I suppose the waves are your organ ?' " 

In the fall of 1844, Rev. Parsons Cooke, of Lynn, 
was invited by the writer to preach the first Congrega- 
tional sermon in Swampscott, at the Humphrey Street 
School-house. The meeting was announced from 
Dr. Cooke's church, and further notice of it was 
given by means of three notices, posted in the village. 
The school-house was lighted on this occasion by 
twelve tallow candles, made at Mr. Hildreth's factory 
in Lynn, which were placed in tin candlesticks, with 
the old-fashioned reflectors on the back. Two high, 
glass lamps, which burned oil, were also kindly 
loaned for the desk, by Mrs. Lucy Blaney, who long 
since went to her rest, leaving her light to shine for 
the benefit of future generations. Dr. Cooke preached 
to a full house, from Proverbs viii : 4. — " Unto you, 
O men, I call ; and my voice is to the sons of man." 
The singing was by four of Dr. Cooke's choir, and 
the exercises of this meeting were much enjoyed by 
all present. Dr. Cooke was so much impressed with 
the success of the gathering that he remarked that 
'* it would not be long before regular preaching 
would be enjoyed by the people of the village." In 
the summer season of the year 1845, Rev. J. B. 
Clark visited Swampscott, with his family, and as 
there was no public religious service, he preached a 
number of times. 

August 24, 1845, in response to a call, by notices 
posted during the previous week, for all who were in 



OF SWAMPSCOtT. 99 



favor of forming a Union Sabbath School to meet in 
the school-house on Redington Street, on the Sabbath ; 
at 5.30 o'clock p. M., there assembled about seventy- 
five children and eighteen adults, and a Union Sab- 
bath School was then and there organized by the fol- 
lowing persons: Mr. and Mrs. E. R. Mudge, John 
B. Richardson, Waldo Thompson, W. D. Brackett, 
Mrs. M. G. Phillips, Mrs. Olive Ropes, Ira Sanborn, 
William Cole, Rufus Delano, A. D. Baker, Mrs. J. 
Honors, Miss Sarah Babb, Miss S. Wilkins, Miss M. 
S. Hill, Miss M. A. Hill, Miss Newhall and George 
Thomas. Mrs. William H. Collins and Mrs. Mary J. 
Weeks were much interested in the formation of the 
school, and did active work. 

On the next Sabbath there were one hundred and 
sixteen present — teachers and scholars. They used 
Banvard's Series of Qiiestion Books. A library was 
soon gathered, eighty-three volumes having been con- 
tributed by two members, and one hundred and forty- 
three volumes were bought — total, two hundred and 
twenty-six volumes. A subscription paper in aid of 
the school was circulated, and sums varying from 
five to twenty-five cents were contributed, some pa}'- 
ing: the latter sum who would now contribute more 
dollars. The school was often addressed by W. B. 
Reynolds, Rev. Asa Bullard and others. Mr. Bul- 
lard was the first clergyman to address the school. 
Of the original eighteen signers, Mr. and Mrs. 
Mudge, Mrs. Olive Ropes, Rufus Delano, Mrs. M. 
G. Phillips and William Cole have since died. For 



lOO HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

the first three months the school averaged eighty, and 
there was about six hundred inhabitants at that time 
in the village ; in the town there are now about two 
thousand five hundred. 

In December, 1845, Rev. J. B. Clark returned to 
Swampscott, giving up all other engagements, and 
establishing himself and family at the house of the 
late Eben Weeks. He commenced holding meetings 
in the school-house, in connection with the Sabbath 
School, December 8, 1845. The school was taken in 
charge by him and called the First Church School, 
the organization of which has been kept up to the 
present time, although three Sabbath Schools have 
sprung from it. August 9, 1S46, Rev. Dr. Black- 
burn was present, and the first Sabbath School 
monthly concert was established, these also having 
been continued to the present time. Teachers' meet- 
ings have also been held at private houses since the 
organization of the school. 

It will be seen by the following extract from the 
doings of the Essex South Association, held in 
Saugus, September 23, 1845, that Parsons Cooke's 
prediction concerning a church soon proved true: 

Resolved^ That as the providence of God seems to have 
opened the way for the establishment of a Congregational 
Church in the village of Swampscott, in Lynn, the members 
of this association will cordially co-operate in all proper 
measures for the accomplishment of so desirable and im- 
portant an object. 

Attest: GEORGE T. DOLE, 

Secretary'. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 101 

At a subsequent meeting of the Conference of 
Churches, at Beverly, was submitted the following re- 
port : 

Reverend and Beloved: — The Essex South Conference 
of Churches, at its last meeting, after hearing statement re- 
specting our enterprise for the building of a meeting-house 
in Swampscott, voted a decided approval of it, and appointed 
a committee to act by way of council and advice, in concur- 
rence with Mr. Clark, who is laboring in that place. The 
committee consists of Rev. Messrs. Worcester and Sessions. 
They have thought that it was due that they, in recommend- 
ing aid to this enterprise from the association, should address 
this letter to the churches, briefly stating the facts of the case. 
Swampscott is a rapidly-growing village, in the east part of 
Lynn, about three miles from the only Orthodox Congrega- 
tional meeting-house in the town, and near two miles from 
any meeting-house in the village. There is a population of 
about seven hundred, and few out of the whole have been 
habitual attendants at any place of worship. It has but a 
very few people who have been attached to our denomina- 
tion, and those few are of limited means. The prospect of 
having a meeting-house and regular worship in the place has 
caused a generous contribution to the enterprise, in raising 
the sum of about five hundred dollars in the village. Mr. 
Clark will build the church, with the distinct understanding 
that the house is to be for the exclusive use of an Orthodox 
Congregational Church ; and the land for building the house 
has been purchased and the contract made, on such terms as 
secured it against the possibility of perversion. The contract 
was made under such conditions that the building might not 
proceed faster than funds were in hand to pay for it, so that 
the enterprise might be sure against being crushed with debt. 
It is to cost $3000. The place is becoming a resort for 
people in the city of Boston and elsewhere, who seek the sea 



i02 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



air in the summer, and has a promise of much increase from 
that source ; and now is the time for us to give a character to 
the place. A Congregational Church established there at 
this time maj be expected to exert a leading and beneficial 
influence. Indeed, providential arrangement now remark- 
ably favors the undertaking; and so favorable an opportunit}' 
must not be lost. We hope all the churches in this Con- 
ference will promptly and cheerfully, according to their 
ability, take part in this good work. 

Signed : By order of the Committee, 

PARSONS COOKE, Chairman. 

At a meeting of the Committee of the Essex South 
Conference of Churches, at Lynn, the following 
resohitions were passed : 

Resolved, That Rev. J. B. Clark be requested to take the 
supervision of the enterprise, and make reports as to collec- 
tions and doings to the committee. 

Resolved, That before the building is commenced, a deed or 
instrument be executed which shall secure the house to the 
perpetual use of the Orthodox Congregational Church. 
PARSONS COOKE. 

Chairman of Committee. 
Attest: Alex. S. Sisson. 

Rev. J. B. Clark solicited subscriptions, December, 
1845, so that the chapel was contracted for, for the 
sum of three thousand dollars, and the land secured. 

July 15, 1S46, the first church in Swampscott was 
organized, commencing with a membership of thir- 
teen persons, members of seven Congregational 
Churches. By the advice and counsel of an ecclesi- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



103 



astical body, convened for the purpose, July 15, 1S46, 
Rev. Jonas B. Clark w^as called as pastor, and he con- 
tinued as such until May 27, 1S66, when he resigned 
his pastoral charge to assume the rectorship of Oak- 
land Hall School, at Dedham, Massachusetts. Messrs. 
,Henry J. Thing and John Chapman built the chapel, 
from the plans of H. & J. & E. Billings, architects, 
of Boston, in the winter of 1845-6. 




FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH. 



The expenses of the church from 1S46 to 1S72 were 
borne by bidding for choice of pews, over and above 
the assessed tax. It was then voted that all seats in 
the house should be free, and the expenses be paid by 
voluntary contributions. In the '^ Annals of New 
England " is the following extract, dated October 35, 



104 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

1632, on the subject of contributions to pay expenses 
in the Boston Church : '' After the pastor, Mr. Smith 
speaks briefly ; then the Elder [agreeably to Acts 13, 
14, 15, etc.] desires Governor Winthrop and Mr. 
Wilson to speak to it, which they do. When this is 
ended the Deacon, Mr. Fuller, puts the congregation 
in mind of their duty of contribution, whereupon the 
Governor and all the rest go down to the Deacon's 
seat and put it in the bag, and then return." 

A communion service was presented to the church 
by the church in South Danvers, September, 1S46 ; 
this was an old service, having been imported, and 
was the first used by the South Danvers Church. 
The hearty thanks of the church were returned by the 
acting pastor. In 1854, '^ h^i'gc and beautiful service 
was presented the church by one of the past officers, — 
Henry Clark, Esq., of Linden Church, Boston, hold- 
ing the plate. After the above was received, the 
church voted to give their first service, of nine pieces, 
to the First Church in Lynnfield Centre, and it was 
forwarded under the pastoral care of Rev. Mr. Shute. 
A vote of thanks was rendered to the Swampscott 
Church September 8, 18^6. Mr. Clark died in Bos- 
ton, at the advanced age of 93 years, from the natural 
decay of his powers. He was the son of the Rev. 
Jonas Clark, of Lexington, and father of Rev. J. B. 
Clark. 



" Till an old age, serene and bright, 
And lovely as a Lapland night, 
Shall send thee to thy grave." 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 105 

A parsonage has been purchased on Rockland 
Street, and is now occupied b}^ the present pastor, 
Rev. George A. Jackson. In the purchase of the 
parsonage, a generous sum donated by the late Eben 
Weeks was applied. Rev. Mr. Clark's residence, 
purchased some time after his removal to Swamp- 
scott, was at Beach Bluft', the estate now owned by 
Mrs. Manton. 

The pastors of the church have been Rev. J. B. 
Clark, Dr. Worcester, Rev. Elias Nason, Rev. F. 
Jones, Rev. John Thomson, Rev. S. H. Alger, Rev. J. 
M. Whiton, Rev. S. E. Eastman. Superintendents of 
the Sunday School — Waldo Thompson, W. D. 
Brackett, Rev. J. B. Clark, Joseph Ropes, Charles 
A. Torrey, Dr. P. S. Porter, C. A. Haskell, B. W. 
Red fern. 

The first parish meeting in that part of Lynn now 
known as Swampscott, was held July ii, 1846, and 
the following oflficers were elected : Parish Clerk, 
William D. Brackett; Moderator, E. Redington 
Mudge ; Parish Committee, E. R. Mudge, Waldo 
Thompson and A. D. Baker. 

At the above meeting it was voted that John L. 
Seger and Harris Wiggins be a committee to solicit 
aid to purchase an organ for the church, and soon 
after an organ was bought of the Congregational 
Church, Marblehead. In 1S54, ^^^^ present organ in 
the church was bought of W. D. Simmons & Co., of 
Boston, and Miss Jennie Story, daughter of Captain 
L. D. Story, was placed in charge, and Miss Louise 
16 



106 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Martin, W. S. King, Mrs. E. E. Barberie, Miss Mary 
E. Story and Miss Abbie M. Mott have since acted as 
organists. Previous to the introduction of the organ, 
the violin, bass-viol, and other instruments were used, 
and the choir was located in the gallery under the bell. 
The bass-viol was played by Mr. Ira Sanborn. 

The church bell was purchased by contributions 
from the society members and many of the citizens of 
the town. 

" Let great and small the church bell call 
Up to the house of prayer; 
And at its cry the passer by 
Goes in and worships there." 

The Ladies' Sewing Circle connected with the 
church and society was organized soon after the 
church was instituted, in 1846, and has done much 
from time to time in aid of the society. It is to be 
regretted that the books of the secretaries, previous to 
1850, are missing, and it is hoped they may yet be 
found. The officers for 1883 are as follows: Presi- 
dent, Mrs. H. R. Thompson ; Vice President, Mrs. 
George A. Jackson ; Secretary, Mrs. Mary E. Bun- 
ting ; Treasurer, Mrs. William Seger. 

Early in the year 1847, ^^^^ pastor of the church. 
Rev. J. B. Clark, invited Father Taylor, well-known 
as connected for many years with the Seamen's Bethel, 
in Boston, to preach. His sermon was characteristic, 
and showed great power of thought. .He remarked 
that the '' church looked like a ship bottom up." [It 
is finished to the ridge-pole.] 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 10' 



In the year 1775, Rev. Mr. Clark, grandfather of 
Rev. J. B. Clark, presided over the Congregational 
Church, at Lexington, Massachusetts. Several years 
after the formation of the church at Swampscott, its 
pastor. Rev. J. B. Clark, was invited to preach in the 
church of his grandfather at Lexington ; he did so, 
and in the forenoon preached a sermon written by his 
grandfather, and in the afternoon one of his own. 

On the Sunday following the death of Rev. Parsons 
Cooke, D. D., of Lynn, Rev. J. B. Clark preached a 
memorial sermon to the church at Swampscott, tak- 
ing as a text Hebrews xii : 13 — " These all died in 
faith." 

The first vestry was a donation from William 
Ropes, of Boston, soon after the church was built. 
His portrait, executed by MissC. Colcord, now adorns 
the vestry walls. He passed several summers at this 
seaside resort, and took much interest in the Sabbath 
School. In 1880, a building was erected connecting 
the vestr}^ and church, tv/enty by twenty-four feet on 
the floor, but of the same height as the vestry walls 
and covered by a flat roof. The interior is divided 
into two rooms, connected by sliding doors. 

The church has been served by nine settled or act- 
ing pastors, and is now ably ministered to by Rev. 
George A. Jackson. During the summer and fall of 
1883, and up to March, 1884, while Rev. Mr. Jackson 
was in Europe on leave of absence, the pulpit was 
filled by Rev. S. D. Gammell, of Lynn, to the satis- 
faction of his larsre audiences. 



108 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

The church has a membership of 85. The Sunday 
School membership is 130, B. W. Redfern, superin- 
tendent ; volumes in library, 390. 

The present church officers (1884) are as follows: 
Rev. George A. Jackson, pastor; B. VV. Redfern, 
Aaron R. Bunting, James M. Pope, parish committee ; 
Fredd O. Thompson, parish clerk ; John P. Richard- 
son and Charles P. Jeflers, deacons, the first named 
having held that position since the formation of the 
church ; Charles O. Galeucia, janitor. 

The Sunday School connected with the Methodist 
Church, of Swampscott, was organized in the spring 
of 1854, during the pastorate of Rev. E. J. Best. 
W. P. Martin, was the first superintendent, and the 
school consisted of nine members. It was held, as 
well as the religious services of the society, in the 
school-house on the beach. The following is a list of 
superintendents to date : W. P. Martin, 1854-6 ; John 
Smith, 1856-8; W. D. Brackett, 1858-1864; J. H. 
Abbott, 1867 to 1869 ; Z. Small, 1869 to 1873 ; S. H. 
Andrews, 1873. The church was organized in 1854, 
Rev. E. J. Best being the first pastor, stationed by the 
New England Conference in April of that year. 

The author of the above statistics writes: ", I en- 
close such meagre statistics as I have been able to 
glean from the stray records and verbal communica- 
tions accessible. I should be glad to have a better 
outline of the growth and progress of our Sunday 
School, but the neglect to keep accurate records from 
the commencement renders this duty very difficult." 



SWAMPSCOTT. 109 



David Atkins was superintendent from 1876 until 
1883, when he resigned ; Mrs. Martha Hunt took his 
place. The school has seventy-five members and a 
library of five hundred and fifty volumes. The fol- 
lowing have filled the desk since 1876: Rev. Mr. 
Dight, in 1876 and 1877; Rev. W. H. Hatch, in 
1878 ; Rev. E. N. Kirby, in 1S79 and 1880; Rev. N. 
H. Martin, in 1881 and 1882 ; Rev. G. W. Coon, in 
1883. The last named is the present pastor. The 
church is free from debt, and now " pays as it goes." 
The church is situated on Redington Street. 

In 1864, Jacob P. Porter, his wife and two daugh- 
ters, David Knox and Sylvester Butler, met as a com- 
pany of disciples, at the residence of Jacob P. Porter, 
for the study of the Scriptures and for the weekly 
observance of the Lord's Supper. 

In the spring of 1865, the Christian Chapel, having 
been built by the liberality of a few brethren in Wor- 
cester, was dedicated March II. The chapel stands 
on Burrill Street, opposite Boynton Street. After the 
dedication. Elder W. L. Hayden held a meeting, 
which resulted in the gathering of a church of forty 
members. Orrin Wood, W. A. Smythe, of Worces- 
ter, and Jacob P. Porter, were chosen trustees. Jacob 
P. Porter and Sylvester Butler were the first elders, 
and since that time David Knox, Frank O. Ellis and 
Gilbert Kniveton have served in that capacity, the 
last two mentioned occupying the position up to date. 
The present trustees are Orrin Wood, W. A. Smythe 
and Nathaniel Blanchard. 



110 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

W. W. Hay den was the first regular preacher, 
serving one year, since which time the church has 
been served by H. U. Dale, Samuel W. Fowler, 
Alexander Marquis, J. W. Lowe, George T. Smith, 
Howard Murray, George A. Lord, and W. H. Rogers, 
who commenced his labors in 1880, and continues in 
service to the present date. 

A Lord's Day School was started soon after the 
church was organized. Sylvester Butler was the 
first superintendent and held the position for seven 
years, after which Theron Porter, Frank O. Ellis, 
George A. Lord and Edwin Keay filled the position, 
the latter being the present superintendent. A suc- 
cessful Sunday School Institute has been held annually. 

The church has borne an honorable and active part 
in temperance work and in the promotion of educa- 
tional interests. 

The Disciples of Christ accept the Bible as their 
authoritative oracle of faith and practise, and plead 
for the letter and spirit of Apostolic order in all the 
essentials of doctrine, worship and organization, 
preferring Bible names for those which men have 
given. There is at present a Band of Hope in con- 
nection with tlie church, under the charge of Gilbert 
Kniveton. The church is supported by weekly 
voluntary contributions. 

The Baptist Church was first known as a Baptist 
Mission. It originated with a very few persons, resi- 
dents of Swampscott, but connected with churches of 
this faith in other places, who desired to establish a 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. Ill 



Christian home according to their own views, and 
draw in some who were not connected w^ith either of 
the other religious societies. The first prayer meet- 
ing was held in November, 1S67, and continued 
weekly at the dwelling-houses, until a church edifice 
was erected for worship. During the winter several 
persons were converted, and in the spring united with 
the High Street Church, Lynn. 

May 10, 1 868, a Sabbath School was formed, with 
forty-five members. The increase was such that at 
its first anniversary the total membership was one 
hundred and twenty-five, and the wdiole amount of 
collections $855.31, with a well-furnished room, and a 
library of three hundred volumes. At the organiza- 
tion of the Sabbath School it was adopted as a Mis- 
sion of High Street, and remained such until the 
formation of the church, in March. 1873, .with a 
membership of twenty-one persons. 

Up to this time the place of worship had been the 
lower room in the Town Hall building. Preaching 
had been sustained for almost the entire time by the 
ministers in the association and students from Newton 
Theological Institution, one each Sabbath, usually in 
the evening. A lot was secured on which to erect a 
building for the use of the society, and the greater 
part paid for before the church organized. Soon 
after the church was formed steps were taken to raise 
money for building purposes, and in August, 1S73, 
the present edifice was dedicated. It is a wooden 
structure, Gothic in style, with a tower surmounted 



112 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

by a spire, and painted drab, with darker shade for 
trimmings. The main audience room has a seating 
capacity for nearly five hundred persons, and one 
thing we fail not to notice, that in one respect it 
differs not from its sister predecessors — it is seldom 
crowded. The interior is finished in black walnut 
and ash, and the walls are adorned with neat but 
simple frescoing. In the rear part of the building is 
the library room and vestry, with vestibule for en- 
trance, and staircase leading from the ladies' parlor 
and pastor's study. The cost of the land and struct- 
ure was $15,000. Soon after a permanent church 
organization was effected. Rev. Lucian Drury was 
unanimously called to the pastorate, and labored with 
untiring perseverance for the prosperity of this branch 
of Zion, financially and spiritually, for nearly four 
years, a portion of the time with no remuneration, 
save the consciousness of faithfully trying to do his 
duty, through evil as well as good report. Since his 
labors closed, the desk was filled for a few Sabbaths 
by other clergymen, and later there was preaching by 
Rev. Mr. Burroughs, pastor of the Wyoma Church, 
once each Sabbath. 

Rev. John E. Dame was the next regular preacher, 
commencing his labors in August, 1880, and settling 
in Swampscott. He was a member of the School 
Board when he resigned his pastorate for another 
field of duty, at Great Falls, N. H. 

Rev. T. C. Russell succeeded Mr. Dame, coming 
to Swampscott from Springvale, Me., in October, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. Ho 



1S83, and served one year. His labors, like those of 
Mr. Dame, were divided between the Baptist societies 
in Swampscott, and Wyoma, in Lynn. 

In the year 1S67, Rev. J. F. W. Ware, of Balti- 
more, Md., finding himself a summer resident in 
Swampscott, otiered to hold a Sunday religious ser- 
vice, provided some place could be procured. It was 
thought nothing could be done about it at that time, 
but renew^ing his proposal the next year, on the 38th 
of June, 1868, a church was formed, bearing the name 
of the •' First Unitarian Church in Swampscott." In 
assuming the chair, George AI. Barnard, said: "For 
more than a (juarter of a century many Unitarian 
families had resided in Swampscott during the sum- 
mer season, and had been obliged to seek in other 
places the spiritual instruction which accorded with 
their views." J. H. Gookin added: "This move- 
ment is not started in a sectarian or proselyting 
spirit, but has for its aim the organization of a 
society which shall embrace all who desire to culti- 
vate a large and generous spirit of Christian brother- 
hood." 

The first service of communion was held August 
30 — the communion service having been kindly 
loaned by the First Congregational Society of Swamp- 
scott. Subsequently a " service " was presented, by 
some of the ladies, to the church. . For some time re- 
ligious services were held at the Town Hall during 
the summer months — sometimes a little longer. In 
addition to the morning preaching, Mr. Ware, for 
^7 



114 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

several years, gave afternoon lectures, more especially 
adapted to the young, filling the hall with the inhabit- 
ants of the neighborhood, and holding a sunset ser- 
vice on " Cannon Hill," until a severe disease of the 
throat compelled him to relinquish it. The fact that 
Unitarian services were held in Svvampscott influenced 
many in their selection of a summer abode. 

In 1859, through the influence of Hon. E. R. 
Mudge and summer residents of Svvampscott, and 
Ocean Street, an edifice known as St. Andrew's 
Episcopal Chapel was erected just across the Lynn line, 
on Michigan Avenue. Episcopal servioes were held 
here during the summer season, until 1876, when the 
worshippers scattered to the other churches of Lynn 
and Swampscott — many going with the Rev. Dr. 
Ware to the Town Hall. The chapel has since stood 
unoccupied, awaiting an act of the Legislature for its 
disposal. 

During the winter of 1877, it was proposed by Rev. 
C. W. Biddle, then pastor of the First Universalist 
Church, Lynn, B. F. Spinney, superintendent of the 
Sunday vSchool, B. W. Currier, and other interested 
parties, that a branch Universalist Sunday School be 
established in Swampscott. It was suggested that a 
series of meetings be holden in the Town Hall, in 
order to confer with the Swampscott people, and to 
hear their views on the matter. Accordingly meet- 
ings were held and largely attended, and quite an in- 
terest was taken from the commencement. The sub- 
ject was freely discussed, some favoring, others think- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. llf) 



ing that the time had not arrived to start a school. It 
was finally concluded that a school be organized at 
once, all interested agreeing to use every endeavor to 
make it a success. A meeting for organization was 
held February 4, 1877, at the house of Mrs. William 
Collins, Rock Avenue. The attendance was quite 
large, and all seemed to be in earnest. David N. 
Johnson was chosen Chairman, and Frank E. Ingalls, 
Secretary. The enterprise was freely discussed, and 
viewed in every light, and on motion of James M. 
Sargent, it was voted to organize the school. 

A committee of five was appointed by the chair 
to present a list of 'ol^cers for the school. The 
following persons were appointed : B. F. Spinney. 
Curtis V. Merritt, Frank E. Ingalls, Mrs. George 
Hobby, Miss Anna Stimpson. who presented the fol- 
lowing names for officers of the school : Superin- 
tendent, Frank E. Ingalls ; Vice Superintendent, Cur- 
tis V. Merritt : Treasurer, Gilbert Delano ; Librarian, 
Henry Collins ; Assistant Librarian, Crowell Rodman. 

A canvassing committee, consisting of the follow- 
ing persons, were selected to ascertain what aid and 
material could be procured, and report at an adjourned 
meeting : Mrs. Samuel Parker, Mrs. George Hobby, 
Miss Anna Stimpson, Mrs. Gilbert Delano, Miss Eva 
Chapman, Miss Mary Palmer. 

At the call of the committee a meeting was holden 
at the house of John Chapman, to hear the report of 
the canvassing committee. B. F. Spinney was chosen 
Chairman, and Frank E. Ingalls, Secretary. The 



ll<3 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

committee met with fine success, and presented the 
names of fifty who wished to become members of the 
school ; also contributions amounting to seventy dol- 
lars. The evening v\-as spent in classifying the 
scholars presented. It was decided to commence the 
work as soon as possible. 

The first session of the school was holden at the 
Town Hall, Swampscott, Sunday, February ii, 1877, 
at 3, p. M. The hall was filled to overflowing, and 
the success of the school was assured. Present — 
teachers and officers, 13 ; scholars, 68 ; visitors, 75. 
Total, 156. Rev. C. W. Biddle, pastor of the First 
Universalist Church, Lynn, and B. F. Spinney, super- 
intendent of the Lynn School, spoke words of en- 
couragement, and all entered heartily in the work. 
Classes were formed and teachers assigned their 
places, and all seemed to enjoy this the first session 
of the Swampscott Universalist Sunday School. 

Shortly after the organization of the school thev 
were presented with a fine library of two hundred 
and eighty-three volumes of carefully selected read- 
ing from the Lynn School. The gift was greatly 
appreciated. A short time after, a fine organ was 
procured by contributions from Swampscott and Lynn 
friends. The library numbers three hundred and 
fifty-three volumes. 

The school contributed toward the Lynn Church 
debt $148.68, and has at present upwards of $100 in 
the bank. The school is nearly seven years old, dur- 
ing which time a deep interest has been manifested. 



OF SWAMPSCOTt. 117 

and has steadily increased in numbers. At present 
the membership of the school is one hundred and 
thirty-four. 

January 3, 1866, Seaside Lodge of Good Templars 
was organized in Swampscott. At a regular meeting 
of the lodge, held February 14, 1866, in the vestry of 
the Congregational Church, the officers were in- 
stalled for the ensuing term, as follows: W. C. T., 
Frederick O. Ellis ; W. V. T., Amelia Foster ; W. S., 
Celia I. Holden; W. R. S., C.J. Millett ; W. L. S., 
H. R. Thompson. The lodge when first formed met 
in the above-named place, but soon after removed to 
the Town Hall ; they had a membership at one time 
of two hundred. At one of their meetings, J. Warren 
Newhall, of Lynn, visited the lodge, and when in the 
Town Hall, at the close of the evening session, he 
lost his cane through a hole in the floor, much to his 
surprise ; the janitor soon restored it, the cane having 
landed in the cellar. After a few years the charter was 
surrendered. Only two of the charter members are 
now connected with the order — Mrs. C. J. Millett 
and Miss Celia L Holden. 

February 6, 1876, Dr. Reynolds lectured in the 
Town Hall. Those interested in the cause of tem- 
perance, thus started, soon formed the Swampscott 
Reform Club, which was organized with a member- 
ship of fifty, and rapidly increased until it numbered 
two hundred and eighty-six. The first oflicers were : 
President, John Washburn ; Vice Presidents, Thomas 
Gannon, B. M. Green and Robert Wiley. The club 



118 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 



has done good work in the cause of temperance, and 
is still in existence. 

The Women's Christian Temperance Union was or- 
ganized by Mrs. Ward, of Salem, on the evening of 
February i6, 1876, with the following board of offi- 
cers : President, Mrs. Bertha F. Eastman; Vice 
President, Mrs. Bartlett ; Treasurer, Miss Knowles ; 
Secretary, Miss Colcord. There were one hundred 
and thirty-six members. The influence of this organ- 
ization has been, and is being, felt in many ways. 

Owing to the eftbrts of Captain William A. Phil- 
lips, John Chapman, John L. vSeger and others, a 
Watchers' Society was organized June 9, 1849. This 
society has been a success, and still does much to 
comfort and care for the sick. The following is a 
list of the officers of the organization from the year 
1849 to the present time, with their time of service : — 
Presidents: John Story, three years; John Chapman, 
twenty-one years ; Charles W^ Haskell, elected in 
1884. Secretaries: John L. Seger, seven years; A. 
L. Harris, three years; W. D. Brackett, Jr., four 
years; Frank E. Ingalls, six years; Curtis V. Mer- 
ritt, two years; II. Byron Martin, eight years, and 
is the present secretar}-. 



CHAPTER XL 

ORGANIZATION OF THE TOWN. 

Incorporation of Toivn of Swanipscott. — I^''ir^t 
Toxvn Meeting. — First Birth and Marriage. — 
Rate of taxation. — Statistics in 1865. — Tozvn 
Report. February. i88j. — Annexation, of part 
of Salem. 



Agreeably to a petition of the inhabitants, an act 
was passed by the Legislature incorporating Swanip- 
scott as a separate town, the bill receiving the signa- 
ture of Governor George S. Boutwell, May 31, 1852. 
The Act of Incorporation is as follows : 

Section i. That portion of the city ot" Lynn, lying casL- 
erly of a line commencing at a point upon the centre of the 
bridge which crosses Stacy's Brook, so called at King's Beach, 
thence running from said point south, twelve degrees east by 
compass to the ocean, and running north from said point 
twelve degrees west by compass to the line which separates 
the city of Lynn from the city of Salem, is hereby incorporated 
into a town by the name of Swanipscott: and the inhabitants 
of said town of Swanipscott are hereby invested with all the 
powers and privileges, and shall be subjected to the duties 
and requisitions of other incorporated towns, according to 
the constitution and laws of the Commonwealth. 



120 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



Sect. 2. The inhabitants of said town of Swampscott 
shall be holden to pay all arrears of taxes which have been 
assessed upon them by the city of Lynn, before the passing 
of this act, and also their proportion of all county and State 
taxes that may be assessed upon said property previously to 
the taking of the next State valuation, said proportion to be 
ascertained and determined by the last city valuation ; and said 
town of Swampscott shall be holden to pay their proportion 
of the debts due and owing, at the time of the passage of this 
act. from the city of Lynn, and be entitled to receive of the 
city of Lynn their proportion of all corporate property now 
owned by said city of Lynn, such proportion to be deter- 
mined by the last valuation of said city of Lynn; provided, 
hoxvever, that the city of Lynn shall be authorized to collect 
the tax which may have been assessed by virtue of law on the 
first of May, this current year, upon the inhabitants and 
owners of propert}^ in said Swampscott; and the said city of 
Lynn, after deducting the reasonable expenses of assessing 
and collecting the same, shall account with and pay over the 
same to the Town Treasurer of said Swampscott; and said 
city of Lynn shall incur no liability for said town of Swamp- 
scott after the passage of this act. 

Sect. 3. Said city of Lynn and town of Swampscott shall 
be respectively liable for the support of all persons who now 
do, or hereafter shall, stand in need of relief as paupers, 
whose settlement was gained or derived from the settlement 
gained, or derived within their respective limits 

Sect. 4. In case said city of Lynn and town of Swamp- 
scott shall disagree in respect to the division of paupers, city 
property, city debts or State and county taxes, the Court of 
Common Pleas for the county of Essex is hereby authorized 
to, and shall, on application of said city of Lynn, or of said 
town of Swampscott, appoint three disinterested persons to 
hear the parties and award thereon ; which award when 
accepted by said court shall be final. 



OF SVVAMPSCOTT. 121 

Sect. 5. The town of Swampscott shall, for the purpose 
of electing the representatives to the General Court, to which 
the territory comprised in the city of Ljnn is now entitled 
until the next decennial census, or until another apportion- 
ment of representatives be made, remain a part of said 
city of Lynn. And the inhabitants of said Swampscott shall 
vote for the number of representatives which the city authori- 
ties of Lynn may decide shall be elected annually in town 
meeting. And it shall be the duty of the Selectmen of said 
Swampscott to preside at said town meeting, and receive the 
votes; and the certificate thereof shall be made by the Se- 
lectmen and certified by the Town Clerk of said Swampscott, 
whose duty it shall be to make return thereof to the Mayor 
and Aldermen of the said city of Lynn, within forty-eight 
hours of the day of voting; and the votes shall be counted by 
the said Mayor and Aldermen as a part of the vote of the said 
city of Lynn. 

Sect. 6. Any Justice of the Peace in the county of Essex 
is hereby authorized to issue his warrant to any principal in- 
habitant of the town of Swampscott, requiring him to warn 
the inhabitants of said town to meet at the time and place 
therein appointed, for the purpose of choosing all such town 
officers as towns are by law authorized and required to choose 
at their annual meetings. 

Sect. 7. This act shall take effect from and after its 
passage. 

Tlie news of the signing of the act by Governor 
Boutvvell was soon spread, and was the cause of great 
rejoicing. Fhigs were disphiyed, bells rung, and a 
heavy roar of artillery proclaimed that the citizens of 
Swampscott were aware of their importance as a 
town of the good old Commonwealth of Massachu- 
setts. In honor of the event a procession was formed 
18 



122 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



under the inarshalship of Colonel Thomas Alker, and 
accompanied by a band of music it marched through 
the principal streets of the town. Among tlie ban- 
ners displayed in the ranks was a venerable ensign 
which floated in the breeze at the masthead of the re- 
nowned frigate " Constitution," when she fought with 
and captured the " Guerriere." In front of the shoe 
shop of John Story, 3d, was suspended a banner 
bearing this incription : " vSwampscott, settled, A. D. 
1629, by Francis Ingalls ; Swampscott incorporated 



looi 




'"^^^Csw^^-^" 



SEAL OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



as a town, May 21, A. D. 1S53." The procession 
halted in front of the writer's store and post office, 
where they listened to an eloquent address by Rev. 
Jonas B. Clark. In the evening the sky was made 
brilliant by the discharge of fireworks, and Dr. J. B. 
Holder caused a fire balloon to be sent up. Among 
the persons assembled to witness the celebration was 
a man belonging in Lynn, whose name tiie writer 
never knew, and after the oration he delivered the fol- 
lowing, written for the occasion : — 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 123 



"Come, all you honest fishermen, and listen to my story, 
And I will tell you of a town that now is in its glory. 
Swampscott is a town so neat, set off by legislators, 
Who have good fish and also meat, and plenty good potatoes. 
The Swampscott men are wide awake, now they have left the city, 
And they their own laws now can make, if not it is a pity. 
Our flag last week was Union down, and then it was half-mast, sir, 
But now we have the Union up, we hope 'twill always last, sir. 
Lawyer Brown, of Woodfield town, and our brave Senator Alley, 
And George Hood— they thought it good against our act to rally; 
But after all that they have done to have our act defeated, 
We are set off, and soon shall have all our work completed. 
Parson Clark, if you will hark, delivered our oration. 
And he is as good as any man we have in our free nation. 
Our Squire Waldo, he can do tlie business here completely; 
Although our numbers here are few, we'll have it done up neatly. 
We have a man in our town, they call him Uncle Story, 
He and his children and his wife, are all now in their glory. 



The following was the petition of prominent citi- 
zens to a justice of the peace to draw up a warrant for 
a town meeting: — 

To Waldo Thompson, Esquire, Justice of the Peace, with and 
for the Count}^ of Essex. 

The undersigned, inhabitants of the Town of Swampscott, 
and legal voters, pray that you will, as soon as may be, issue 
a warrant to some principal inhabitant of said Swampscott, 
directing him to notify the legal voters of said Swampscott 
to meet at some place and time specified in said warrant, for 
the organization of said town, and for the choice of all such 
officers as towns may and are required by law to choose. 

Signed — Flenry J. Thing, John L. Seger, Moses Nesbitt, 
Jr., John B. Richardson, W. W, Marshall, F. A. Pickering, 
N. C. Wiley, Edmund Knowles, William D. Rowe. Thoinas 
Widger. 



l24 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

This petition resulted in the issuing of the follow- 
ing : 

Commonwealth OF Massachusetts. Essex ss. To Henry 

J. Thing, of the Town of Swampscott, in said County. 

In the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts you 
are hereby required to warn the freeholders and other inhabit- 
ants of the town of Swampscott, qualified to vote in town 
affairs, to assemble at the Atlantic Engine Hall, in said town, 
on Saturday, the fifth day of June next, at ten o'clock in the 
forenoon, then and there to act on the following articles, to 
wit — 

Article i. To choose a Moderator of said meeting. 

Art. 2. To choose all necessary town officers for the 
organization of the town of Swampscott, and for conducting 
the same for the current year. 

Art. 3. To raise such sums of money as may be neces- 
sary to defray the expenses incident to the incorporation and 
organization of the town, and to meet the town charges the 
current year, and make appropriations of the same. 

Art. 4. To determine the manner of repairing the high- 
ways and bridges the current year. 

Art. 5. To know if the town will authorize their Select- 
men to establish the boundary line between this town and the 
city of Lynn, by erecting suitable monuments, and to settle 
all matters with said city pertaining to the division of the 
public property of said city, and to adjust all matters neces- 
sary to be settled with said city, by reason of ^the act of in- 
corporation of the town of Swampscott, and in conformity 
thereto, and to pay all bills necessarily incurred in obtaining 
said act of incorporation, and in effecting the organization of 
the town, and such as may become necessary in establishing 
said line and in effecting said settlement. 

Art. 6. To see what the town will do in reference to pro- 
curing a public burial ground. 



OP' SWAMPSCOtt. 



Art. 7. To transact all lousiness that may legfally come 
before the meeting. 

Hereof fail not and make due return of this warrant and 
of your doings thereon, unto me, on or before the fifth day of 
June, 1852. 

Dated at Swampscott. the twenty-eighth day of May, A. D. 
1S52. 

WALDO THOMPSON, 

Justice of the Peace. 

Essex ss. Swampscott, June 5, A. D. 1852. By virtue of 
this warrant I have warned the freeholders and other inhabit- 
ants of the town of Swampscott, qualified to vote in town 
affairs, to assemble at the time and place and for the purpose 
therein mentioned, bv posting a true copy of said warrant in 
six of the most public places in said Swampscott. 

Signed : HENRY J. THING. 

Essex ss. Swampscott, June 5, 1852. Then personally 
appeared the above-named Henry J. Thing, and made oath 
that the foregoing retm-n is true. Before me, 

WALDO THOMPSON, 

Justice of the Peace. 

The citizens of the town having met in accordance 
with the warrant, the meeting was called to order by 
Waldo Thompson. A ballot for Moderator resulted 
in the choice of vSamuel C. Pitman. An elegant 
black walnut ballot-box was then presented to the 
town by Leonard Thompson, Jr., of Woburn, Mass. 
On one end was " Swampscott, 1S52," in gilt letters ; 
on the opposite end a shield of Liberty. The follow- 
ing letter was read : 



126 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



To the Voters, of S-Mampscott — Gentlemen : — Please 
accept the gift accompanying this note as a slight testimonial 
of respect for your unwearying kindness, in friendly inter- 
course with the many visitors to your pleasant town, and 
what should be as widely known, that steady regard for 
popular government, mutual improvement and equal rights, 
whieh ever has and ever shall characterize the results of de- 
positing the intelligent strong will of the people even in a 
frail ballot-box. With many wishes for your continued pros- 
perily, T am. 

Yours Respectfully, 

LEONARD THOMPSON, Jr. 

Woburn. June r. 1852. * 

A vote of tlianks was given to Leonard Tliompson, 
Jr., for the gift of the liallot-l)ox. 

The following is a list of the officers cliosen at this 
meeting, those marked with a star having since de- 
ceased : Selectmen, Samnel C. Pitman,* Eben B. 
Phillips,* Henry J. Thing ;* Town Clerk, John L. 
Seger ; Treasurer, John Chapman, Jr. ; Assessors, 
J. F. Phillips,* Thomas Stone, Jr.,* Allen Wash- 
burn ;* School Committee, Jonas B. Clark, Henry 
H. Hall, Edward Woodford ; Overseers of the Poor, 
William D. Rowe,* Mark G. Phillips,* John B. 
Richardson ; vSurveyors of Highways, Allen Wash- 
burn,* Jonathan F. Phillips;* Constables, B. IT. 
Davis,* Nathaniel Galeucia, Charles Leavitt ;* Tyth- 
ingmen, William Widger,* J. P. I^laney,* Jf)hn Wil- 
kins ;* Measvirer of Wood and Bark, Philander Hol- 
den ; Surveyor of Lumber, Moses Gilbert; Field 
Drivers, A. C. Newhall, James Nesbitt,* S. R. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 127 



Bartlett,* William Galeiicia : Pound Keeper, Jacol) 
VVilford ; Board of Health, James Nesbitt,* J. H. 
Holder, A. C. Newhall ; Fence Viewers, Allen 
Washburn,* Ebenezer Weeks,* Fitzvvilliam Griffin ;* 
Sealer of Weights and Measures, John B. Richardson. 

At the adjourned town meeting, held on June 26, 
1853, it was voted " That the by-laws, now read as 
presented by a committee chosen at a previous meet- 
ing, be approved and accepted, and that the fore- 
going by-laws be presented to the Court of Common 
Pleas, for this county, at the ensuing term, that the 
same may be approved and passed into laws." 

January i, 1S53, the by-laws were examined and 
approved. 

The balance due the city of Lynn, October 9, 1852, 
was $5450. New by-laws were adopted by the town 
March 19, 1880, and approved by the court, January 
5, 1S81. The whole number of voters at the hrst 
town meeting was one hundred and hfty-five. Each 
voter's name was recorded before casting his bajlot. 
Henry J. Thing, J. B. Phillips and Ebenezer Weeks 
were the first Auditors of the town. According to 
their report, dated March i, 1853, ^^^^ town debt was 
$4500. Whole number of polls in town in the year 
1859, four hundred and four; rate of taxation, $4.60 
pA- $1000. 

The tirst town meeting held in the Town Hall was 
March 9, 1861. Rev. J. B, Clark opened the meeting 
with prayer. Eben N. Wardwell presided as Moder- 
ator. The land for the structure was purchased of 



128 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 



John Proctor ; the carpenter work by John Chapman : 
masonry, by Horace M. Norton ; painting, by Charles 
A.Morris. Total cost of building, $4614.01. A 
llagstatVwas erected on the grounds surrounding the 
liall May 15, 1S61. In 1SS3, a large addition was 
built to tile rear of the hall at a cost of $2588.1.) ; the 
whole was newly painted and the ceiling frescoed, 
and now the building is sufficiently large to meet the 
requirements of the town. 

The cemetery is pleasantly located in the northern 
part of the town, being situate on Essex Street, ai^out 
three-quarters of a mile from the Eastern Railroad 
depot. The land was purchased of Colonel C. A. 
Stetson, October 11, 1S52, at a cost of $1500. The 
grounds were graded and laid out in lots, and on the 
sixteenth of September, 1854, ^^^^ cemetery was con- 
secrated, with appropriate services, the address being 
given by Rev. Jonas B. Clark. Additional land was 
given to the town by Ebenezer Weeks. 

" All nations rose from earth at first, 
And turn to earth again." 

First death registered in town, May 37, 1852, Lucy 
E. Thomas, one month and six days. 

John Seger, aged sixty-four, was the tirst person 
buried in the cemetery. He had been buried at Lynn 
Eastern Burial Ground, July 31, 1852, and was moved 
to Swampscott Cemetery, November 4, 1854. 

Whole number of interments in the cemetery up to 
January i, 1885, seven hundred and lifty-eight. The 
town has a new receiving tomb finished in 1884. 



( 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 129 



The first birth in town,Maj 30,1852, John Frederick 
Ingalls, son of Ephraim and Eh'zabeth C. Ingalls. 

First record of marriage was between E. T. Heath 
and Hannah M. Newhind, of Marblehead. 

In 1865, there were 16 marriages, 49 births and 24 
deaths in Swampscott. 

In the year 1865, there were three master builders, 
one boat builder, one blacksmith shop, one tin-ware 
shop. Vessels employed in the mackerel and cod fish- 
ing busniess, 50, and dories, 31 ; tonnage, 1309. Bar- 
rels of mackerel taken, 3875, value $42,325 ; quintals 
of cod fish, 7127, valued at $42,233 ; value of cod liver 
oil sold, $526^ ; value of salt consumed, $3720; hands 
employed, 199. Farmers, 29. Acres, 1329. Value, 
including buildings, $209,760. Acres of land im- 
proved, 500. Persons employed, 69. Value of onion 
crop, $12,390; cabbages, $499 ;. winter squashes, 
$560; hay, $9345. Horses, 98; value $1 1,255. Lob- 
sters trapped, 37,000. Value offish, s2Dawns and livers, 
$200,150. Large amounts of spawn are gathered in 
the spring, barreled up and shipped to the Mediter- 
ranean Sea, to be used as bait in the sardine fisheries. 

In the year 1873, there were 59 births in Swamp- 
scott, 31 females and 28 males; 12 of these were 
born in the month of December, 6 of them being 
males and 6 females. There were 38 deaths, 20 
females and 18 males, 7 of these being in August and 
7 in November. Tax rate, $12 on $1000. 

There were 39 deaths in Swampscott in 1876, and 
23 marriages. 
^9 



130 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

There were 37 deaths in Swampscott in 1878, two 
of which were those of non-residents. Mrs. Sally 
Gilbert was the oldest, and Mrs. Sally Seger, aged 81, 
the next oldest. There were iS marriages and 56 
births in town. There were 632 names on the voting 
list in 1878. 

In the year 1877^ there were 39 deaths in Swamp- 
scott. 

In 1861, the rate of taxation was $5.70 on $1000. 
Number of voters, 319. 

February, 1884. Public property in town, $51 ,S6i . 
Births: males, 33; females, 20; total, 43. Mar- 
riages recorded, 26. Deaths: males, 18; females, 
17 ; total, 35. Number of dogs licensed, 114 ; males, 
104; females, 10. Total number of acres of land 
assessed in town, 1563 ; dwelling houses, 535 ; polls, 
633. Tax $10.00 on $1000. 

April 3, 1867, a narrow strip of land, formerly a 
part of Salem, was annexed to Swampscott: it ex- 
tended to the seashore between Marblehead and 
Swampscott. 



CHAPTER XII. 

TOWN IMPROVEMENTS. 



7 own Library. — Post Office. — Pire Engines. — 
Eastern Railroad. — Suuampscott Branch Rail- 
road. — Horse Railroad. — Cheap Transporta- 
tion. — Water Pipes. — Street Lamps. 



During 1884, a tower was built on the Town Hall, 
containing a bell connected with a fire alarm system, 
having eight boxes; also a fine " Howard" clock. 
Cost $660. During the day alarms can be given from 
the central office, located in Jeffers' drug store, and at 
night a man is on duty at the engine house. This 
clock was furnished by voluntary contributions, and 
the names may be found in the Town Records. 

About the year 1852, Dr. William R. Lawrence, of 
Boston, a summer resident in Swampscott, conceived 
the idea of founding a town library, and to start the 
plan he contributed upwards of one hundred and 
fifty volumes and $100 in money. At the town 
meeting held October 9, 1852, it was voted to accept 
the proposition made by Dr. Lawrence, and the Se- 
lectmen appointed a board of officers. Rev. Jonas B. 
Clark serving as President. The library opened with 



132 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

two hundred and forty volumes, and the phin adopted 
by the board of officers was that individuals become 
voluntary members and pay a small sum annually, so 
long as they remained members,' the money thus col- 
lected to be used to secure new books, etc. The li- 
brary to be a Town Library, and the plan adopted 
did not convey any ownership of books to the mem- 
bers. Whether the library suffered from lack of 
patronage or need of good books, it had an inglorious 
death, and the mutilated books that were left after a 
few years' struggle to make a good impression on the 
minds of Swampscotters, were stowed away in two 
boxes, where they remained in quiet seclusion for 
several years. In i86S, the town appropriated a sum 
of money to fit up a room in the Town Hall, to be 
used as a library. This work was done, and Curtis 
V. Merritt was appointed Librarian, with power 
from the Selectmen to solicit subscriptions. Mr. 
Merritt succeeded in raising a neat little sum, with 
which new and popular books were purchased and 
added to the old ones, and the library again started 
with about four hundred volumes on the shelves. 
The enterprise proved very popular, soon demanding 
more commodious quarters, and a large addition was 
made to the library room. Mr. Merritt was aided in 
his duties, at different times, by Masters George Cros- 
man, Edward Crosman and George T. Till. Messrs. 
Fred O. Ellis, Benjamin Potter and Charles A. Has- 
kell, 3d, served the town as Trustees of the Library 
without pay. During the year ending February 38, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 133 



1883, another addition was made to the library room, 
the ceihngs being decorated, new gas fixtures added, 
and a new carpet laid. Six fine oil paintings, the gift 
of Mrs. E. R. Mudge, now adorn the walls. Miss 
Kittie Honors is Librarian, assisted by Masters Bertie 
Stone and John Earp ; Curtis V. Merritt, George 
H. Holden and F. F. Stanley, serving as trustees. 
Volumes in library, four thousand seven hundred and 
thirty- five. 

In the year 1S46, the writer, at the request of a 
number of citizens in the village of Swampscott, 
drew up and circulated a petition to the Postmaster 
General for the purpose of securing an established 
post office in the village. Several other petitions had 
been presented in the years gone by, but for some 
reason liad failed to secure the desired end. The 
petition w^as generally signed by all to whose atten- 
tion it was brought. I only recall one person declin- 
ing to affix his signature, he declining on the ground 
that " as he neither wrote or received any letters, he 
could not see the necessity of an office in Swamp- 
scott." John L. Seger, at that time a clerk in my 
store, did much toward securing many signers to the 
petition. In due time the petition was forwarded to 
the proper authorities at Washington, D. C, and at 
length an office was established at vSwampscott, and 
the writer received the commission as postmaster, re- 
ceiving in payment for his services fifty dollars per 
year and the " franking" privilege. 

For a number of years, previous to the post office 



134 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

being established at Swampscott, " Father Story," on 
returning from selling his fish in Lynn, would bring 
and distribute all letters, receiving two cents each for 
them. Soon the office received two mails from Lynn 
per day, and sent out two, Benjamin Pierce, driver 
of Goldthwait's omnibus, running from Lynn to Mar- 
blehead, acting as mail carrier. The business of the 
office increased from year to year, and in 1861 there 
were one hundred boxes, where in 1S46 there were 
only twelve. In 1861, Daniel P. Stimpson was ap- 
pointed to the position of postmaster, he holding the 
commission until October i, 1866, when Jacob Porter 
was appointed to the charge of the office as post- 
master, and his son Joseph as his assistant. The post 
office was then removed to his apothecary store, in 
Widger's bloci<:, where it remained until June i, 1869, 
when Mr. Stimpson was reappointed as postmaster, 
which position he had held up to the present time, 
January, 1S85. The office now contains three hundred 
and fifty boxes. A list of letters is posted in the out- 
side office on the arrival of each mail. 

Mr. Hilton, David Austin and James Wheeler have 
at different times acted as mail carriers, Deacon James 
Wheeler being the present carrier, the mail being 
taken to and from the depot of the Eastern Railroad 
at Swampscott. There are at present five mails re- 
ceived, and four mails sent from the office per da}'. 
In 1876, during the montlis of June, July and August, 
there were 15,400 letters handled at the office. In the 
corresponding months in 1S77, 16,516 letters, show- 




TOWN HALL. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 185 



ing un increase of 1116. In June, July and August, 
1 883, there were 24,331 letters, and 6301 pieces of 
third and fourth-class matter. Mr. Stimpson, the 
present postmaster, is assisted in his duties by Miss 
Nellie A. Martin. 

A post office was established September i, 1879, at 
Beach Blufl', with A. Wesley Clough as postmaster, 
and James O. Sanborn as assistant. They handle 
four mails per day from June to November, and two 
mails per day for the remaining period. " In" mails, 
sent from September i to December 31, 1879, con- 
tained 5000 pieces; for the year 1S80, 23,000; 1881, 
24,000; 1883, 35,000; 1883, 38,000 pieces, showing 
that the business of this office as well as the main 
office is rapidly increasing. 

The Eastern Railroad Company was incorporated 
April 14, 1836, and a track of the road was opened 
from East Boston to Salem, August 27, 1838. One 
thousand persons passed over the road the first day. 
On the. arrival of the train at East Boston the pas- 
sengers left the cars and went on board a ferry boat, 
which soon landed them on the Boston side, near the 
foot of Commercial Street. On the 27th of August 
I saw, at 10.30 A. M., the first passenger train passed 
through Swampscott, on the road to Salem. 

" First, the shrill whistle, then the distant roar, 
The ascending cloud of steam, the gleaming brass, 
The mighty moving arm; and on amain 
The mass comes thundering, like an avalanche o'er 
The quaking earth; a thousand faces passed — 
A moment, and are gone, like whirlwind sprites. 



136 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Scarce seen; so much the roaring speed benights 

All sense and recognition for a while; 

A little space, a minute and a mile! 

Then look again — how swift it journeys on ; 

Away, away, along the horizon, 

Like drifted clouds to its determined place; 

Power, speed and distance, melting into space!" 

Previous to the opening of the road, people went to 
and from Boston in stages. These stages would start 
from the old Elm vStreet Tavern in Boston, and thence 
over the old turnpike to the West Lynn Hotel. In 
the summer of 1838, I was sent to the seashore at 
Swampscott for my health. Arriving in Boston, I 
took my seat in the stage at the tavern named, and 
was soon on the way. At the West Lynn Hotel I 
was transferred to a buggy owned by the stage com- 
pau}^, and taken to Ebenezer Weeks' house, Swamp- 
scott, where I spent several weeks, gaining rapidly 
in health and strength. Cost of ride from Boston 
to Swampscott, fifty cents. 

A short time after the opening of the railroad a 
depot was established at the easterly end of the bridge, 
near the present cemetery, to accommodate Sv^^amp- 
scott and Marbleiiead passengers. From the depot a 
stage made four trips daily to Marblehead. This 
depot did not furnish sufficient accommodations for 
vSwampscott passengers, and a petition was presented 
to President Neal by Hon. Cyrus Washburn and 
others, for a depot where the station now stands ; 
this petition was granted,, and a building was erected 
ten by twenty feet, and was devoted to the several 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 137 



uses of ticket office, waiting room, baggage room 
and store room. Daniel F. Proctor was appointed 
ticket master, which position he held until August 
lo, 1877 ; Geoi^e R. Hussey is station master at the 
present time (1884). Swampscott now has a first- 
class station with a neat clock in the tower, and ample 
space about the building for the use of its patrons. 
Here can be found conveyances to take passengers to 
their several destinations, among them being those of 
the veteran John Washburn, who for more than thirty 
summers has transported passengers to and from the 
station, and of whom it has been said that he never 
lost a train but once, and then he was waiting for a 
newly- wedded couple. 

In 1S73, October 20, a branch road was opened 
from Swampscott to Marblehead, four miles in length, 
and called the Swampscott Branch Railroad. E. B. 
Phillips, J. P. Palmer and others, exerted their in- 
fluence to have it constructed, and now it has hand- 
some stations along the line, and many beautiful 
residences have been built on the attractive seashore 
route. During the summer season many more trains 
are run on this branch than in the winter. The 
advent of the steam cars has done much toward mak- 
ing Swampscott a noted summer resort, it being about 
thirty minutes' ride from Boston. Hundreds of 
people are carried to the city in the morning, return- 
ing at night, while many others stay for a week or 
more, and then depart for other resorts, being able to 
travel the required distance rapidly by the aid of the 



138 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Eastern and other railroads. It is estimated there 
have been as many as fifteen thousand people, perma- 
nent and transient guests, in Swampscott, in a single 
season. In July, 1883, there were 'thirty-five pas- 
senger trains going east, and thirty-five going west, 
and nine freight trains each way, per day, over the 
main line of the Eastern Railroad, a total of eighty- 
eight regular trains. 

The Eastern Railroad Station in Boston, at the 
present day, is on Causeway Street, opposite Friend 
Street. Horse cars and omnibuses run every few 
minutes to all parts of the city. It is one of the most 
spacious stations in the city, the inward and outward- 
bound trains having distinct tracks, so. that liability of 
mistake in entering cars is greatly lessened, and much 
confusion avoided. The principal freight depot of 
the road is now at Charlestown. Officers of the com- 
pany have rooms upon the second floor of the pas- 
senger station, for the transaction of business. 

In the Lynn Daily Item of February 30, 1882, it 
is stated that railroad station agents see a good deal of 
life, and many strange things are brought to their 
notice. The average man or woman coming to the 
ticket window is generally confused as to how to 
express the want which they feel. Perhaps a good 
illustration of this may be had by a perusal of the fol- 
lowing list of names which would-be purchasers of a 
commutation ticket between Boston and Lynn have 
given at the Eastern Railroad vStation : Commenda- 
tion, communication, combination, compensation, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 139 



computation, communion, complimentary, chip, clip, 
card, club, billet, bunch, baggage-ticket-what-do-you- 
call-them, slip, season, trip, long ticket, dollar ticket, 
one-of-those-things-you-know-what, full ticket, five 
ride, punch, package and excursion ticket. 

Previous to the year iSSi, people from Svvampscott 
desiring to ride on the horse cars were obliged to pass 
King's Beach, by way of Humphrey and Ocean 
Streets, to the terminus at the foot of Lewis Street. 
In the spring of iSSi, however, after some opposition, 
the Lynn and Boston Horse Railroad was extended 
to Mudge's Square, and on Saturday evening, about 
six o'clock. May 14, 1881, the first passenger car 
passed over the line into Swampscott, and regular 
trips were commenced on the following week. The 
cars make trips every fifteen minutes between Swamp- 
scott and Lynn, transferring passengers to such cars 
as may connect, for all par-ts of the city, at one fare. 
In May, 1S82, the Upper Swampscott track w\as ex- 
tended to the head of Burrill Street, on Essex Street. 
Fare from any part of Swampscott to any part of 
Lynn, five tickets for twenty-five cents. Many 
Lynn people have built tasteful cottages in Swamj:)- 
scott, and go to and from their work on the horse 
cars. 

In the summer of 1884, the line was extended to 
Marblehead. The cars began running June 25th, 
and at once met with an unexpected patronage. 
Three thousand people are said to have been carried 
over the road in one day soon after its completion. 



140 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

It runs past Phillips Beach Station and the head of 
Beach Bluff Avenue. 

" Hail! to-day cheap transportation 
Comes in triumph to our station ; 
Bearing in its train the story 
Anti-monopoly, the people's ^lory! 
Roll it along, through all the town, 
The people's right-cheap transportation ! 
See the people come to meet us ! 
At the station many greet us ! 
All take seats with exultation. 
Glory in cheap transportation." 

In June, 18S4, the Lynn and Boston Railroad Co., 
erected a large stable 280 x 35 feet, containing one 
hundred and one stalls, and also a car-shed 337 x 44 
feet, being large enough to store thirty-two cars, on the 
site of the old " Duck-house," (this was moved to 
Chippewa Court in Lynn). The stable is lighted by 
gas, has Lynn water, and all modern improvements. 
A blacksmith's shop is conveniently located in the 
rear of the stable. 

Previous to the year 1824, there were no engines for 
putting out fires in the village of Swampscott. Feel- 
ing the need of an engine to insure their safety, the 
citizens petitioned the town (Lynn) for the necessary 
apparatus. The petition was granted, and the "As- 
sistant," built by Thayer, of Boston, was shortly after 
received and kept in a small house, built for the pur- 
pose, on a ledge at Blaney's Beach. It was a " tiny 
little tub," but in the hands of Foreman Ephraim 
Taylor, and his crew, did eflective service when 
needed. The law of the State exempted any man 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 141 

serving in a fire-engine company from military duty. 
After nearly twenty-five years, it was found that the 
old building had been rendered useless by wear and 
from its exposed position, and that the machine was 
nearly " played out." A new house was built on 
Humphrey Street, and a new engine, the "Atlantic," 
No. 7, purchased, and with an efficient crew, consist- 
ing of strong and jolly fishermen, was ready for 
instant use in time of need. After many years the 
house was removed to a site on New Ocean Street, 
where it still stands. Among the first foremen were 
Ephraim Taylor, E. Ingalls, W. A. Phillips, P. L. 
Seger, F. E. Andrews, Allen Washburn and John 
Chapman. 

It is not too much to say that for stalwart men, who 
could bend on to the brakes and stick there, no com- 
pany in the vicinity excelled the old " Atlantic." 
They pulled the machine along steady as truck horses, 
and walked her up to a fire like a thing of life. She 
could work — and play. One old fireman says, "I 
have seen her lifted clean oft' the ground at each end, 
when the bo3^s would 'jump her' in earnest." The 
tub never lacked for volunteers, and many a Lewis- 
streeter caught on and " manned the rope" as she was 
rushed along on the way to a fire. The " Atlantic " 
always had water enough and to spare. Sometimes 
the boys w^ould encounter a rival company, and a 
race would be the result, when one company would 
" wing out" its brakes and keep the other from pass- 
ing them. Lynn firemen were up to all the dodges, 



142 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 



and the Swampscotts usually did their best to dodge 
them. 

In the year 1S83, it was voted to purchase a steam 
fire engine, of the most approved make. The school- 
house, which was located on Essex vStreet, near the 
cemetery, was removed to New Ocean Street, and 
prepared for the reception of the new engine, named 
'^ Swampscott, No. i." The steamer — a " Silsby " 
machine — has proved itself able to do efiective work, 
and it is a credit to the makers and to the town. A 
fire department has been organized, with the follow- 
ing officers : Chief Engineer, D. Holman Millett ; 
Assistants, Robert Harris, Ivory Emmons. 

In the fall of 1SS2 and spring of 18S3, there were 
laid in the streets of the town, about fourteen thou- 
sand feet of water pipes. George H. Norman, of 
Newport, R. I., being the contractor. 

The new patent ballot-box was first used at the 
November, 1S84, election. 

Since 1882, the streets of the town have been well 
lighted by one hundred and twenty-five lamps. 

In 1845, Edwin Walden commence the sale of 
weekly newspapers, magazines, etc., for J. L. Alger, 
of Lynn, one year; B. F. Brackett, two years; then 
Mr. Walden bought and run the business two years, 
and sold to J. M. Munroe in 1850. The route was 
vSaugus, Lynn and Swampscott. Mr. Walden called 
often at the writer's store in Swampscott with his 
bundle of papers, and once made the remark that 
Swampscott was the best paying part of his route. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

SCHOOLS. 

School-houses and Schools. — Teachers in i88j. 



Previous to the year 1794, Lynn had only one 
school-house, situated near the easterly boundary of 
land now used as the Common, for the accommoda- 
tion of all its scholars, including the villages of 
Sv^^ampscott and Nahant. This building was sold for 
£14, as the town had decided to have two school- 
houses, which were erected, one at the westerly sec- 
tion of the town, and the other at '' Fresh Marsh 
Lane," near the spot where Chestnut and Collins 
wStreets now intersect. Between 1797 and 18 14, the 
children in Swampscott went to the latter school 
across the fields, as no roads were then laid out. P. 
L. Seger, who moved to Swampscott from Marble- 
head, in the year 1800, attended this school and was 
its last survivor, his death occurring in 1874 ; his 
parents occupied the farmhouse still to be seen on the 
Mudge estate. 

Swampscott's first school-house was purchased in 
Marblehead, in 1814, by James and "Farmer" 
Phillips, for fifty dollars, and in May of that year all 



144 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

the neighbors turned out, and with ten yokes of oxen, 
moved the building to a site at Whale's Beach, near 
the spot where the Hotel Beacon now stands, and 
nearly opposite the summer residence of Philo S. 
Shelton, of Boston. The services of the men were 
given to further the cause of education. Such was 
the provision then made to accommodate thirty 
scholars in the village of Swampscott — a little sec- 
ond-hand building, about 25 x 30 feet, painted red. 
The school-house had one window on each side and 
one door, partly of glass, with a shutter which swung 
up overhead. This shutter furnished a fine trap, and 
the boys of the school were accustomed to load it, 
when raised, with all sorts of " trash," so that when 
the master closed the school and lowered the shutter, 
down came the contents upon his devoted head. Of 
course these yoimgsters were called to account, but as 
in similar mischievous pranks conmiitted by school- 
boys of the present day, all persisted in saying that 
they '-' knew nothing about it." 

" Hold on for a moment teacher! 
You'd better ignore the rule, 
Than punish that little urchin 

Who has just laughed out in school." 

Allen Rowe, uncle of the gentleman of that name 
now living at Beach Bluff, near the Marblehead line, 
and brother of that venerable citizen of Swampscott, 
William D. Rowe, who died in 1S77, at the age of 
ninety-four years, was the first teacher in this school- 
house, others being Ira Ingalls, of Salem ; Henry 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 145 

Perley, Master Dean, and Miss Judith Phillips. Wal- 
ter Phillips was the last teacher in this place, where 
many now living graduated with honor. The scholars 
took turns in making fires and keeping the house in 
order, and as matches was then unknown, and it being 
too much trouble for each pupil to take a tinder-box, 
a skillet was used to carry live coals from the nearest 
house to light the school-house fire. 

The following is a copy of a " Reward of Merit " 
issued by Master Perley to a well-known citizen of 
vSwampscott : 

" This is to certify that E. B. Phillips 
For being bright and early, 
That you receive the praise and thanks 
Of your teacher — Henry Perley." 

Miss Judith Phillips, mentioned above, was a 
teacher only a short time. She received the attentions 
of one Mr. Fisii, but seems afterwards to have mar- 
ried a Mr. Pond, which fact caused some person to 
indite the following lines, which were made public : 

"Miss Judith Phillips was a lucky Fisli, 
As ever looked upon ; 
She just escaped the frying pan, 
And jumped into a Pond." 

The second school-house was located near the 
present intersection of Orient Street and Orient 
Court, at about the spot where George Hofton's 
house now stands. Hie lot was deeded foi' the pur- 
pose May 15, 1830, by Joseph and Ruth Blaney. 
Master Merrill was the first teacher in this house. 

21 



146 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

The third school-house was located on Orient 
Street, now Humphrey Street. The land was pur- 
chased by the late E. B. Phillips, as School Com- 
mittee, from Messrs. George and Walter Phillips, in 
the year 183S. This was the only school-house for 
several years in this part of the village. The land 
was deeded in 1838, but the original deed having 
been lost before it was recorded, another was given 
and recorded in 1S39. The latter deed bears the fol- 
lowing endorsement : " It is the same lot of land that 
was sold by our late father, John Phillips, to E. B. 
Phillips as agent for said ward. The said deed from 
John Phillips to said E. B. Phillips is said to be lost, 
as it has never been recorded, and this deed is given 
on account of the same being lost ; and if the other is 
found, then it is to be of no effect, otherwise it is of 
free effect and virtue." 

Prior to 1840, a small wooden school-house was 
erected on the eastern side of Cherry Street, Upper 
Swampscott (then, as all other portions of the town, 
included in the limits of Lynn), near its junction with 
Essex Street, and nearly opposite the Leonard Collins 
Estate. The early teachers there were Miss Harriet 
Folsom (later Mrs. Otis H. Green) and a Miss Beck- 
with. Among the pupils of this primitive school 
were some who afterwards became prominent in 
business, in politics, or in literature. About 1846, 
the school-house was removed to Jackson Street. 
Lynn, and enlarged to double its original size. After 
serving its purpose here for years, it gave place to a 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 147 



larger structure, and was removed to Howard Street, 
where it was used for a ward-room. Its final dispo- 
sition is unknown to the writer. 

The fourth school-house was located on a part of 
the site of the present grammar school-house on 
Redington Street, and when a new and larger build- 
ing was demanded, the old house was moved to Bla- 
ney's Beach and the grammar school-house built on 
the spot where it now stands, an exchange of adjoin- 
ing lots having been made, slightly altering the location 
of the school-house from the original site of the old 
building. The land was deeded to Lynn by Captain 
Nathaniel Blanchard, May 15, 1846. On the 24th of 
August, 1845, the first Sunday School in town was 
organized in this school-house. It has since been 
used as a ward-room, school-house, and is now the 
headquarters of the Swampscott Reform Club. 

The fifth was the grammar school-house specified 
above. 

The sixth school was located on the " Farms," in 
1855, and was first taught by Miss Laura Roberts, 
whose services were paid for by subscriptions collected 
in that neighborhood. For three years the school was 
kept in Captain PL S. Martin's house, situated at 
what is now the corner of Atlantic Avenue and Orient 
Street, Miss Harriet N. Bartlett being the teacher in 
1S56 and 1857. The new school-house in this district 
was built in 1S58, on the farm of the late John P. 
Palmer, for which an appropriation of $1200 was 
made by the town. 



148 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



The seventh school-house was located on Pine 
Street, and was built by Ivory Emmons, in 1864. 
After a few years, the building was raised another 
story to accommodate two schools. A hall was fin- 
ished in the upper story and named Palmer Hall, in 
honor of J. P. Palmer, which is now the headquarters 
of General James L. Bates Post 118, G. A. R. The 
estimated expense was $2500, but the actual expense 
amounted to the sum of $4576.12. 

The eighth school-house was located on Essex 
vStreet, nearly opposite Swampscott Cemetery, and 
was built under a vote and appropriation of $3000 
passed by the town, March 9, 1872. 

Lynn High School-house was dedicated in Jan- 
uary, 185 1. D. W. Fuller and others attended this 
school until wSwampscott was set off as a town in 
1852. 

A High School was established in the Town Hall, 
in 1876. The grammar school building on Reding- 
ton Street having been enlarged, the High School was 
removed to new quarters, in that building, in 1876. 
In the year 1883, it was found necessary to have 
larger and better accommodations for the school child- 
ren in the upper part of the town, therefore the old 
school-house opposite the cemetery was removed to a 
site on New Ocean Street, and remodelled into an 
engine-house, and a new school-house was built by 
Ivory Emmons, on the spot where E. Burrill's barn 
was burnt years before, and nearly opposite Burrill 
Street, on Essex Street. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 149 



The following are the teachers for 1885 : First 
Primary, Miss C. F. Mott ; Pine Street Primary, Miss 
A. E. Boynton ; Beach Primary, Miss vS. A. Porter; 
l^each, Miss H. M. Norton ; Essex Street, Miss Emma 
J. Machon ; Pine Street Intermediate, Miss H. J. 
Thing ; Farm, Miss Cora E. Gale ; Second Grammar, 
Miss E. J. Hadley and Miss L. E. Chase; First 
Grammar, Miss A. M. Mott; High School, Mr. and 
Mrs. E. P. Barker. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

WAR RECORD. 

Old Soldiers. — Revolutionaiy War. — War of 
l8l2. — War for the Union. — Naval Service. 
— Soldiers' Monume^it. 



As has been shown, our chief citizen in the early 
days, John Humphrey, held a high military rank, 
having been commissioned Sergeant Major General, 
and put in command of all the troops in the county. 
Doubtless his martial appearance inspired terror in 
the souls of the natives, and may have kept them from 
man}' a nightly raid upon the flocks of the settlers. 
That he was of soldierly blood is shown by the tradi- 
tions concerning his gallant ancestor, Sir John Hum- 
phrey, who flourished in the year 1390, as 

'• A warrior who spared 
Nor land, nor gold, 
Nor child, nor wife, 
Nor limb, nor life, 
In the brave days of old." 

Mrs. Mary Qiiestrom, widow of Oliver Qiiestrom, 
and daughter of John Melzard, a soldier in the Revo- 
lutionary War, died at the advanced age of nearly 



SWAMPSCOTT. 151 



eighty-six years. Her father assisted in rowing 
Lafayette ashore at Marblehead, and was with Wash- 
ington when he was " crossing the Delaware." 

The following toast was given by George Wash- 
ington in a hospital of the army in i77^- ^^ ^^^^ ''^' 
lated to my father by a Revolutionary soldier who 
was present and heard it : 

" Better health to the sick and wounded, honor to 
the brave, success to the American flag, and freedom 
to the slave." 

This toast was repeated by the same veteran soldier 
at the dinner given to General Lafayette at the laying 
of the corner stone of Bunker Hill Monument. 

Philip L. vSeger served in the war of i8i3, enlist- 
ing in Captain Samuel Mudge's company as private, 
at Salem Neck ; he was soon promoted to sergeant. 
and was afterward made bearer of dispatches. 

Nathaniel Blanchard served in Captain Martin's 
company. Colonel Messenger's 3d Regiment, 3d 
Brigade, ist Division, of Boston, from September 16 
to October 10, 1814. 

John Seger served in a detachment of Captain Ben- 
jamin Mudge's company, of Lynn, which was a part 
of Colonel Brimblecom's regiment (4th), ist Brigade, 
2d Division, from June 29 to August 15, 1S14. 

The brig "Grand Turk," belonging in Salem. 
Mass., was one of the finest of American privateers 
in the war of iSi3. She was fortunate as a cruiser, 
and was famous for her good qualities as a sea-going 
vessel. She was three hundred and ten tons burden. 



152 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

and was manned by one hundred and fifty men, under 
the command of Captain Nathaniel Green. Her 
armament consisted of eighteen gims (nine-pounders). 
Captain Thomas Widger, of Marblehead, and hiter of 
Swampscott, was one of the galhmt crew. On arriv- 
ing at Salem, after a cruise of one hundred and three 
days, there remained but forty-four of her original 
crew, the greater portion of the rest being in charge 
of her prizes — seven vessels, of various kinds. There 
were also fifty prisoners, and merchandise to the value 
of twenty thousand dollars between her decks; these 
were landed on Salem wharf. One of the captured 
cannons, a nine-pounder, was brought to Swamp- 
scott and mounted on Winnepisekitt Hill, where for 
many years it was used for firing salutes ; it was 
afterwards moved to Blaney's Beach, where on the 
4th of July, 1857, Henry Scales and John Draper 
were seriously injured by a premature discharge, 
while firing salutes. Scales was badly wounded in 
the abdomen and had an arm broken ; Draper had an 
arm broken, an eye destroyed and was otherwise 
injured ; both were removed to the Massachusetts 
General Hospital, where death soon ended their 
sufierings. The cannon is seven feet long, and bears 
date of 179S, with figure of a crown and other marks. 
It now rests at the foot of the fiagstafi', beneath the 
^' starry flag," at the Town Hall. In 1SS5, the can- 
non is to be removed to Mudge Square. 

Swampscott's response to President Lincoln's call 
for troops to preserve the Union of States was prompt 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 153 



and hearty. The total nuinber of men sent into mili- 
tary service was 170; number of men drafted who 
paid commutation fee of $300, 9 ; number of men 
drafted who procured substitutes, 5 ; number of sea- 
men that served in the naval service, 35 ; total, 209. 

One hundred and twenty-nine of the men who en- 
listed in the army received a bounty. The whole 
amount of bounty money voted and paid by the town, 
together with that raised by subscription was 
$37,375. Other expenses, $5,814.41. Total ex- 
penses. $33,349.41 . There were 55 men who en- 
listed in the army and 35 in the navy who received 
no bounty. All of the town's quotas under the dif- 
ferent calls of the President were promptly filled, and 
at the close of the war a surplus of twenty-two men 
over all calls was remaining. These facts and figures 
show conclusively that vSwampscott has never been 
wanting in patriotism, or backward in fulfilling her 
whole duty toward the government and the country. 

That the ladies of the town were equally patriotic 
with the men, is shown in the fact that in the year 
1863, they formed themselves into an association for 
the purpose of aiding the Swampscott soldiers, and by 
their devoted labors were able to contribute many 
supplies for their relief and comfort. 

Charles Redington Mudge, son of the Hon. E. R. 
Mudge, of Swampscott, was killed at the battle of 
Gettysburg, July 3, 1863, while leading a charge on 
the rebels. He graduated from Harvard College in 
i860. He enlisted as ist Lieutenant in 3d Mass. Vol- 

2Z 



154 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

unteer Infantry, May 35, 1861 ; promoted to rank of 
Captain, July 8, 1861 ; Major, November 9, 1862 ; 
Lieutenant-Colonel, June 6, 1S63. He was aged 
twenty-three years, eight months, eleven days, when 
he was killed at the head of his regiment. His body 
was brought home and buried in his father's lot at 
Pine Grove Cemetery, Lynn ; afterwards the remains 
were removed to the garth of the Mudge Memorial 
Church (St. Stephen's), on South Common Street, 
Lynn. It may be said that Colonel Mudge was born 
for a military career. He was a young man of ex- 
cellent traits, and won many friends, but he never 
seemed to have fairly attained his peculiar sphere in 
life, or the pursuit for which nature had fitted him. 
until he found himself in the uniform of the soldier. 

Everett Boynton, son of Eli and Mary Boynton, 
was born in Pepperel, Mass., July 12, 1822 ; graduated 
at Darmouth College, 1845 ; engaged in teaching 
until the Rebellion broke out. In September, 1861, 
he enlisted as private in ist Mass. Cavalry, for three 
years, or for the war. In 1862, appointed warden of 
regimental hospital, and subsequently as clerk in 
general hospital, at Port Royal, S. C. In 1863, 
transferred to signal corps by orders from the war de- 
partment. In 1864, served as clerk at headquarters, 
•' Rendezvous of Distribution," near Alexandria, Va. 
Discharged at Boston, September, 1864, having 
served three years and ten days from the date of en- 
listment. He has been a resident of Swampscott 
since the summer of 1850. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 155 



Rev. Jonas Bowen Clark, M. A., Darmouth Col- 
lege. Enlisted, September iS, 1861 ; commissioned 
by Governor Andrew ; discharged August 19, 1863, 
by special order of Major-General Peck, Eighteenth 
Army Corps. He proceeded South as Chaplain of 
the 23d Mass. Regiment; encamped at Annapolis, 
Md., during the fall of 1861, and in December of the 
same year embarked from that place for Fortress 
Monroe ; from thence embarked for Hatteras Inlet 
and Roanoke Island, N. C. After the battle of 
Roanoke Island, proceeded to Nevs^bern, N. C, and 
then with the regiment went into permanent quarters 
for the spring and summer of 1S62, the regiment 
doing provost duty. Appointed to Sanitary Com- 
mission, October 27, 1862. Special service, April 
10, 1862, Major-General Burnside, transport " Con- 
sack" to be fitted as a hospital ship. Chaplain Clark 
to take charge of the sick and wounded, and see that 
they were conveyed to their homes at the North, this 
order being issued with special concurrence of T. G. 
Snelling, Medical Director of i8th Army Corps. 
Special order 82 of General Foster, to proceed to 
Massachusetts for sanitary supplies, as Sanitary Com- 
mission for North Carolina Department. Special 
order U. S. A. Q. M. to Chaplain Clark, to ship sani- 
tary stores from Massachusetts to North Carolina De- 
partment, November, 1862. By special order, Jan- 
uary 21, 1863, he was detailed as bearer of dispatches 
from General Foster to the North. Special order 
from Secretary of War, February 27, 1863, with re- 



I5fi HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

ference to the Sanitary Commission Department. 
Special order by Brigadier-General Palmer, Newbern, 
N. C, March 35, 1863, to proceed as Post Chaplain 
to convalescent camp, Trent River, N, C, and re- 
port to headquarters its condition. Detail for special 
service as officer in charge of flag of truce, in the 
spring of 1863. Resigned August 19, 1863, by reason 
of illness from effects of climate, by advice and order 
of Acting Surgeon-General Derby, Department of 
North Carolina. 

Since the close of the war Chaplain Clark has been 
connected with various army associations, as chaplain 
of army posts, east and west, and chairman of an im- 
portant commission ; on the roll of honor of Dart- 
mouth College, and now Chaplain and Librarian of 
the City Institutions of South Boston. 

Colonel Joseph A. Ingalls, of Swampscott, en- 
listed as private in Co. I, 8th Regt. M. V., August 
20, 1863. Promoted to QLiartermaster-Sergeant, No- 
vember 7, 1863, and again to ist Lieutenant and 
R. Q. M., 8th Regt. M. V. [Colonel Ingalls' mili- 
tary record was published at length in the history of 
the Ingalls family.] 

Edward Marsh, Jr., enlisted May 7, 1S61. He 
participated in twenty battles, and was wounded at 
Cedar Mountain, August 9, 1862, in the breast. He 
was conveyed to the hospital at Alexandria, and then 
to Washington, and was honorably discharged at the 
expiration of his term of enlistment. 

Sylvester Blaney enlisted in August, 1861, for tliree 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 15' 



years, in Co. F, 22dJVIass. Infantry, as a private; no 
bonnty. Promoted to corporal in December, 1S62 ; 
was with his regiment in every battle in which it 
participated to July 3. 1S63, receiving a gunshot 
wound at Gettysburg. Was discharged in August, 
1S64, at the expiration of his term of enlistment. 

Richard Horton enlisted July 5, 1S61, for three 
years, in Co. G, 14th Infantry, afterwards ist Mass. 
Heavy Artillery, and was placed in charge of the 
magazine ; he was discharged at the expiration of liis 
term of enlistment. 

Peter A. Martin, Jr., enlisted January 16, 1862, for 
three years, in Co. G, 14th Mass. Infantry. Pro- 
moted to Corporal in 1864 ; transferred to " Shandon " 
in the navy, Mav 16, 1864, and discharged April 27. 

.865. 

George W. Wilkins enlisted July 5, 1861, in Co. 
G, ist Heavy Artillery, discharged January i, 1S64, 
to re-enlist. In May, 1864, transferred to the navy, 
from which he was discharged August 8, 1865, at the 
expiration of his enlisted term. 

Edwin A. Stimpson enlisted under the first call, 
April, 1861, for three years, in Co. C, 14th Infantry; 
transferred to ist Heavy Artillery, December 21. 1863, 
and discharged July 31, 1865. He participated in the 
following battles: Spottsylvania, Va., North Anna, 
Tolopotomy Creek, Cold Harbor, siege of Petersburg, 
Va., June, 1864; Strawberry Plains, Deep Bottom, 
Polar Spring Church, Boynton Plank Road. Weldon 
Railroad, Hatcher's Run, capture of Petersburg, in 



158 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

1865 ; Sailor's Creek, capture of rebel wagon train in 
April, 1865 ; capture of Farmville, and when General 
Lee surrendered was at Clover Hill, Va. 

Joseph A. Horton enlisted for three years, in 1862, 
in Co. G, 14th Infantry; transferred to ist Mass. 
Heavy Artillery. He was in the second Bull Run. 
Discharged July 8, 1865 ; time expired. 

Samuel C. Heald enlisted July 20, 1S62, for three 
years, in ist InfLintry, receiving $250 bounty ; he was 
killed in the service. 

W. W. Cox enlisted September 28, 1861, in ist 
Mass. Cavalry, Co. H ; discharged July 7, 1862. 

Caleb O. Stone enlisted for nine months' service, 
in Co. E, 45th Regt. Mass. Infantry, September 26, 
1862. He died at Foster General Hospital, Newbern, 
N. C, December 11, 1862, after a sickness of about 
two weeks. His remains were buried in Swampscott 
Cemetery. 

William Widger enlisted September 16, 1861, for 
three years' service, in ist Mass. Cavalry, Co. H. 
He was taken sick at the battle of Fredericksburg, 
and died December 20, 1S62. His body was buried 
in our cemetery. 

George Dudley Blaney enlisted September 26, 1862, 
for nine months' service, in Co. E, 45th Regt., Mass. 
Infantry. He died at Camp Spinola, Newbern, N. C, 
June 22, 1863, of malarial fever, and his remains now 
rest in Swampscott Cemetery. 

Andrew M. Chute enlisted in Co. B, 23d Regt., 
for three years' service, February 18, 1864. He was 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 159 



taken prisoner by the " Rebs." and died in Anderson- 
ville slaughter-pen, September i, 1864. 

Zachariah Small, Jr., enlisted August, iS6i, in Co. 
E, ist Mass. Heavy Artillery. Was captured, and 
confined in Andersonville prison-pen, where he died 
September 20, 1S64. 

Thomas Donnelly enlisted September 26, 1862, for 
nine months, in Co. E, 45th Regt,, Mass. Infantry. 
He was killed at the battle of Whitehall, N. C, De- 
cember 16, 1862. 

Ezra F. Delano entered the service May 13, 1864, 
for one year, in Co. E, 19th Regt. He was taken 
prisoner before Petersburg, Va., June, 1864, and died 
in Andersonville, November 3, 1864. 

Michael Haley entered service February 16, 1864, 
in Co. D, 19th Regt. He was discharged on account 
of disability, December 16, 1864, and died on his way 
home. 

Joseph W. Boynton, Adjutant and staff officer in an 
Ohio regiment, died of wounds received at the battle 
of Murfreesboro', Tenn. His body now rests in 
Swampscott Cemetery. 

E. T. Heath enlisted for three years, in Co. I, 29th 
Mass. Regt., and was transferred to the Veteran 
Reserve Corps in 1862. He participated in several 
important battles. 

Thomas L. Glass enlisted for three years in Co. 1, 
29th Infantry. He participated in fourteen battles, 
and was discharged by reason of disability, February 
26, 1863. 



160 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Augustus A. Blaney, son of Benjamin and Sally 
Blaney, enlisted April 19, 1S61, for three years, in 
Co. I, 29th Mass. Regt. Discharged on surgeon's 
certificate of disability, April 3, 1863, having com- 
j)leted his enlisted term within seventeen days. 

E. A. Blanchard enlisted in September 26th, 1S63, 
nine months, Co. E, 45th Infantry. Discharged, 
July 7, 1863 ; time expired. 

Charles E. Harris enlisted in May, 1861, for three 
years, in Co. I, 39th Regt. 

George Horton enlisted for three years, in Co. 1, 
29th Infantry. He was wounded in the battle of 
Blue Springs, October 10, 1S63 ; he also took part in 
battles of Antietam, James' Cross Roads, siege of 
Knoxville, and the Wilderness. Discharged in May, 
1S64. 

E. G. Blaney, enlisted 1S62, nine months, Co. E, 
45th Infantry. Discharged July q, 1863 ; time ex- 
pired. 

Joseph A. Millett enlisted at the first call, April 19, 
1S61, for three years, in Co. I, 29th Infantry; was 
wounded in the hand at the battle of Spottsylvania ; 
discharged May 24, 1864. 

John R. Merritt was born in Marblehead ; moved 
to the city of Philadelphia, where his parents went, 
in 1852, and remained there until 1S59, when he came 
to Swampscott at the breaking out of the Rebellion ; 
was a member of the Winthrop Cadets, Captain 
Daniel Fuller; enlisted October 17, 1861, in the 2d 
Regt., Mass. Vol. Infantry ; served until October 20, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 161 

1S64, participating with his regiment in all the prin- 
cipal battles of the Army of the Potomac, and sub- 
sequently u* the Army of the Cumberland, under 
General Sherman, in his " march to the sea." 

Sergeant Charles H. Smith, then a mere stripling, 
hardly arrived at the military age of eighteen, en- 
listed in Co. K, 32d Regt., M. V. M., SeiDtember lo, 

1861, for three years, and was discharged July S, 

1862, for disability. September 36, 1863, he re-en- 
listed for nine months in Co. E, 45th Mass. Regt., 
Captain Thomas B. Wales, Jr., being honorably 'dis- 
charged at the expiration of his term of service, Jidy 
7, 1863. December 29, 1863, he was again mustered 
into the service as Sergeant of Co. D, 56th Mass. 
Regt., serving with that body till the next Se[)tem- 
ber, when he was taken prisoner at Hatch's Run, Va., 
and sent to Salisbury, N. C, where he died Decem- 
ber 31, 1864. 

Alphonso Nesbitt enlisted for three years in Co. P", 
3d Infantry. In 1863, he was transferred to the regu- 
lar Army, and afterwards to a gunboat in the Navy. 

John Merritt enlisted under the call of 1861, in the 
17th Infantry, Co. A. He was injured while helping 
to save the wagon train when the army was retreating 
during the '' Seven Days' Fight." Discharged August 
7, 1863, at Harrison's Landing, Va., by reason of 
physical disability. 

R. A. Douglass enlisted April 31, 1861, for three 
years, in Co. K, i3th Infantry, transferred to V. R. C, 
December 3, 1863, and was discharged June 27, 1864. 



162 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Moses N. Woodbury enlisted for three years, in 
Co. D, 1 3th Mass. Vol. Infantry, no bounty, under 
the call for 75,000 men, in 1861. He wTis in thirty- 
two engagements, among them, Cedar Mountain, 
Thoroughfare Gap, Second Bull Run, Chantilly, 
South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettys- 
burg and Rappahannock Station, was in the advance 
towards Richmond, under General Grant, May 3, to 
June 26, 1S64, and was mustered out July S, 1S64, at 
expiration of term of service. Colonel James L. 
Bates, wrote of Woodbury, August 10, 1S64, as fol- 
lows : "Moses N. Woodbury, a private of Co. D, 
1 2th Regt. Mass. Vols., is one who has often been an 
object of my admiration upon the battle-field ; he is 
brave as the bravest, and in action enthusiastic, enter- 
ing into the spirit of the fight as though it were his 
greatest delight. At the battle of Fredericksburg he 
was complimented on the field by me for his splendid 
conduct. It is with pleasure that I bear this testi- 
mony to the character of the highest type of the 
Union soldier." 

William D. Brackett, Jr., enlisted in Co. E, 45th 
Infantry, for nine months, September 26, 1863, as 
private, receiving $300 bounty. He was promoted to 
Corporal, and discharged July 7, 1863, by expiration 
of term of enlistment. 

John W. Brooks enlisted for nine months in Co. E, 
45th Infantry, in 1S62, as private, receiving $200 
bounty ; promoted to rank of Corporal ; discharged 
in 1S63. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 163 



George C. Richards enlisted in 1862 for nine months 
in Co. E, 43d Regt. Infantry. Wounded April 29, 
1863, in battle of Gum Swamp, N. C. ; discharged in 
1S63, at expiration of term of enlistment. 

William W. Bowman enlisted September 26, 1862, 
in Co. E, 45th Infantry, for nine months, receiving 
$200 bounty ; promoted to Corporal, and discharged 
July 7, 1863, at expiration of term of service. 

Richard B. Caswell, Jr., enlisted for nine months 
in Co. E, 45th Infantry, vSeptember 26, 1862 ; dis- 
charged July 7, 1863, time expired. 

William Henry Collins enlisted September 26, 1862, 
for nine months, receiving $200 bounty, in Co. E, 
45th Infantry ; discharged July, 1863, time expired. 

Sylvester F. Douglass enlisted for nine months in 
Co. E, 45th Infantry ; discharged July 7, 1863. 

Joseph W. Glass enlisted for nine months in Co. E, 
45th Infantry. Re-enlisted for three years in Co. F, 
29th Infantry. Was in battles of Cold Harbor, 
Whitehall, Goldsborough, and Gum Sw^amp. W^as 
wounded in the eye at battle of Petersburg, and also 
in right hand. He was taken to the hospital at An- 
napolis, thence to York hospital, and was mustered 
out in June, 1865. 

Horace W. Wardwell enlisted July 5, 1861, in 14th 
Infantry, Co. H; transferred to ist Heavy Artillery 
in 1863; promoted to Sergeant May i, 1863; trans- 
ferred to Navy, May 30, 1864; accidentally wounded 
by pistol ball, in joint of left ankle ; discharged Au- 
gust 7, 1865. 



104 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

David C. Bunting enlisted for three years in Co. H, 
23d Infantry ; discharged at Newbern, N.C., in 1863, 
for disability, and re-enlisted in September, 1863, in 
Co. E, 45th Infantry. He was wounded at Roanoke 
Island, and received an honorable discharge. 

Patrick Milan enlisted for three years in Co. I, 33d 
Infantry, and in 1863 re-enlisted for three years. 
State records say he was killed in action. 

Frederick C. Pierce enlisted in Co. C, 14th Infan- 
try, and was transferred to ist Mass. Heavy Artillery ; 
discharged after about six months' service for disabil- 
it}'^, and, on recovering, re-enlisted in the ist Infantry 
in 1863, and discharged June 39, 1861^. 

James Umber enlisted at Marblehead, in ist Mass. 
Heavy Artillery, for three years. He was wounded 
before Petersburg. He was discharged after serving 
nineteen months and one day, by special order. 

John C. Stimpson enlisted for nine months, Sep- 
tember, 1S63, in Co. E, 45th Infantry, receiving $300 
bounty. Discharged June, 1863, on account of dis- 
ability. 

Merritt E. Porter enlisted in September, 1863, for 
nine months in Co. E, 45th Infantry; received $300 
bounty. In battle of Kingston, N.C., disabled four 
months, and was ill in hospital with typhoid fever. 
Discharged July 7, 1863. 

George F. Colcord enlisted for three years in 1S63, 
in 1st Heavy Artillery, Co. L. Received no bounty 
from the town, but was presented with v$i35 as a pri- 
vate gift. He was wounded, before Petersburg, Va., 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 105 



in the right temple, causing loss of right eye. Dis- 
charged May 1 6, 1S65. 

Frederick O. Ellis enlisted Septemher 15, 1S62, for 
nine months, in Co. E, 4'^th Infantry, and was dis- 
charged July 7, 1S63. 

Below are given the names of those who served in 
the defense of our country in the Navy ; also a few 
statistics gathered from a report of 1866 : 

Joseph Wilson entered the Navy as Paymaster, 
July 24, 1S13, and served in the brig " Rattlesnake," 
1S13 ; ship "Argus," 1814 ; brig " Savannah," 1815 ; 
frigate "Macedonian," 181 7, for four years ; schooner 
"Shark," 1824; frigate " Guerriere," 182S for four 
years; "North Carolina," 1836, four years; ship 
"Preble," 1840; ship "Lexington," 1846, for four 
years; steamship " Powhattan," 1861. He was born 
at Marblehead, October 30, 1788, and died at his resi- 
dence on Black Will's Clifl', Swampscott, in June, 
1875. He was the oldest Paymaster in the service, 
and was a most correct and methodical man. It is 
said that his accounts with the government never va- 
ried a dollar, and he enjoyed, as he deserved, the 
fullest confidence of the authorities in the Navy De- 
partment. During the closing years of his life, he 
was placed on the retired list, ranking as Commodore. 
His remains now rest at Marblehead. 

Samuel R. Bartlett, "St. Lawrence," " Qiiaker 
City;" C. O. Blaney, "Huron;" Edward H. Cas- 
well, "Western World," "Anacostia," "Ella," "Ot- 
they Vassar ;" John C. Caswell, '• Restless," " Santi- 



166 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



ago de Cuba ;" Nicholas Cross, "Siren ;" Thomas H. 
Durgan, " Housatonic" and "Monitor;" Edward I. 
Frost, "Midnight;" William Gross, "St. Law- 
rence;" Michael Haley, Jr., " Tuscarora ;" Christo- 
pher C. Hew^es, "Sabine" and "Florida;" Rodney 
Lane, "Tahoma;" Simon Lowell, "Kensington;" 
Ebenezer S. Martin, " Ethen Allen';" Alphonso 
Nisbett, " Gunboat;" Willis Newcomb, " King Fish- 
er ;" Thomas Pray, Jr., " Santiago de Cuba" and 
"Gemsbok;" Nelson Phillips, "Minnesota;" Elisha 
D. Pedrick, "Lancaster;" James O. Stone, " Kear- 
sarge;" James O. Stone, "Hunchback," "Itasca," 
and "Savannah," (re-enlisted). 

The surrender of the stained and tattered banners, 
borne by the soldiers of Massachusetts, to the keeping 
of the State, was one of the most imposing, and at the 
same time, affecting occasions incident to the war. 
This took place December 22, 1865. There are two 
hundred and sixt3-nine flags in all, one hundred and 
ninety-four having been carried by the infantry regi- 
ments and seventy-five by cavalry and artillery. 

" And many saw the waving flags, 

The fluttering flags, the tattered flags, 

Red, white and blue, shot through and through, 

Baptized with battle's deadly dew." 
" And tlie Star Spangled Banner, oh, long may it wave 

O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave." 

In New York City, on the occasion of rejoicings 
over a victory of the Union forces, many banners and 
mottoes were displayed along the line of procession, 



OF SVVAMPSCOTT. 167 



among them was one large flag, with the following 
inscription : " Colors warranted not to run." 

In April, 1S65, when it became known that the war 
was at an Gud, there was great rejoicing in the town. 
A procession was formed, with Captain Nathaniel 
Blanchard at the head, and they marched through the 
streets, responding to the cheers which greeted them 
all along the route. Many of the private dwellings 
were brightly illuminated, bonfires were lighted in the 
streets, bells were rung, and a salute fired. Swamp- 
scott had nobly contributed her share in putting down 
the Rebellion, and could well rejoice in the downfall 
of Richmond. 

The formation of a Grand Army Post in the Town 
of Swampscott was first conceived by Comrade John 
R. Merritt, a member of Gen. Lander Post No. 5, of 
Lynn. Mr. Merritt, living in Swampscott, knew 
there were many men in town who had served the 
United States in crushing the Rebellion in the dark 
days of 1861-65. Acting with military promptness, 
he procured an application for a charter in December, 

1869, and circulating it among the "Boys in Blue" 
he was enabled in three days to forward to the head- 
quarters in Boston, a list of twenty-one names. Mer- 
ritt E. Porter, also a citizen of Swampscott, and mem- 
ber of Gen. Lander Post, co-operated heartily with 
Mr. M. in tiie work, and, on the 34th of January, 

1870, a charter was issued, bearing twenty-one names, 
as follows: Edwin A. Stimpson, ist Mass. Heavy 
Artillery; A. J. Nobl^, ist Mass. Heavy Artillery; 



168 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

John R. Merritt, 3cl Mass. Infantry; Meiritt E. Por- 
ter, 45th Mass. Infantry; Edward Marsh, Jr., 3d 
Mass. Infantry; B. H. PhiUips, loth Mass. Light 
Battery ; G. W. Wilkins, ist Mass. Heavy Artillery : 
R. L. Rich, 45th Mass. VoL Infantry; B. F. Smith, 
4th Mass. Light Artillery; E. G. Blaney, 45th Mass. 
Infantry ; E. T. Heath, 29th Mass. Infantry ; Sylves- 
ter Blaney, zzd Mass. Inflmtry ; M. N. Woodbury, 
1 2th Mass. Infantry; S. F. Douglass, 45th Mass. In- 
fantry; W. H. Fletcher, ist Mass. Light Battery'; 
Daniel G. Frazier, 8th Mass. Infantry ; J. A. Horton, 
1st Mass. Heavy Artillery ; C. O. B. Blaney, seaman, 
U. S. Navy; E. H. Caswell, seaman, U. S. Navy; 
H. W. Wilson, seaman, U. S. Navy; E. S. Martin, 
Jr., seaman, U. S. Navy. 

The formation of the Post took place in the Town 
Hall on Monday evening, February 2, 1S70, in the 
lower room, the officers and men being mustered in 
by Frederick Grant, of Salem, Inspector for the dis- 
trict. The following were elected to serve as officers 
of the Post for the year: Commander, John R. Mer- 
ritt; S. V. Com., B. F. Smith; J. V. Com., S. F. 
Douglass ; Adjutant, Sylvester Blaney ; Qiiartermas- 
ter, Edwin A. Stimpson ; Chaplain, A. J. Noble, 
Surgeon, M. N. Woodbury ; Officer of the Day, W. 
N. Fletcher; Officer of the Guard, M. E. Porter. 
[Q. M. S. and Sergeant Major not appointed.] The 
number of the Post was 118. The name of General 
James L. Bates, of 12th Mass. Regt., was otiered by 
Comrade Moses N. Woodbuiy, of the same regiment. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 169 



as a name for the Post, and the Post was thereafter 
known as "Gen. James L. Bates Post, No. ii8, 
Swampscott." The muster-roll of the Post shows the 
membership to have been as high as sixty, but death 
and change of residence has reduced the ranks until 
there remain but about thirty men. Since the organi- 
zation of the Post more than seven hundred dollars has 
been distributed for charitable purposes. The head- 
quarters of the organization has been in Palmer Hall, 
for the past twelve years, and during the past few 
years no rent has been collected by the town for its use. 

The Post as an organization has maintained its 
association, and stands to-day as the 'only society in 
town of a secular nature, holding weekly meetings, 
and running for over thirteen years. The present 
commander, Peleg Gardner, is very popular among 
his comrades. 

In 1883, a Soldier's Monument was erected in 
Monimient Square, formerly Mudge's Square, directly 



in front of the Mudge estate, the land being given 
to the town for that purpose by the Mudge heirs. 

The monument is of granite, with bronze trim- 
mings and bronze tablets. Its height is thirty feet 
from the ground, with a base six feet ten inches 
square. The four dies or tablets are three feet six 
inches square (bronze). The front tablet, facing the 
Mudge estate, contains the inscriptions; on the oppo- 
site side is the date of erection ; on the two other 
sides are the names of the fourteen soldiers to whose 
memory the monument is erected. 
24 



170 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

On the first section of the shaft are four bronze bas- 
reliefs — on the front the U. S. coat of arms ; on the 
opposite side a soldier and sailor ; on the right a rep- 
resentation of cavalry, and on the left a representa- 
tion of artillery. Above this is a bronze wreath. 
The shaft is square, with a plain, pointed top. 

The monument, which cost $2943.10, was dedicated 
in 1S83. 

When the last soldier and sailor who served in the 
Rebellion shall have passed away, who will strew the 
beautiful floral tributes over his grave .^ 

In closing these notes of Swampscott in the war, I 
will quote from a shield which hangs in the mansion 
once owned by Robert E. Lee, at Arlington Heights, 
Va., the grounds of this estate being the resting-place 
of fifteen thousand soldiers who fell in the defence of 
their country : 

" Here sleep the brave, who sink to rest, 
By all their country's wishes blest." 



CHAPTER XV. 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 



William D. Rowe lived in Swampscott when first 
married. In 1S20, he moved to Lynn and took 
charge of the poor farm at the salary of two hundred 
and fifty dollars a year. He attended service at the 
" First Church." Afterwards moved to Swampscott, 
but continued to attend the same church until his 
death. In 1S42, it was the custom to have the 
owner's name painted on the pew. There was a 
painter in Lynn who was indebted to him fifty dollars ; 
he could not collect his bill, and so he hired him to 
paint his name on the pew, by way of settlement; he 
told the writer that when he saw the name on the pew 
his first reflection was that it had cost him fifty 
dollars. 

About the year 1826, Mrs. Sarah Ellis opened a 
small variety store near where the Reform Club now 
have their headquarters ; she afterward moved to the 
other side of the street. The school-children passed 
by her door on their way to and from school, and 
many would leave their pennies in exchange for her 
wares. In the woods she gathered sassafras, gold- 



172 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



thread and checkerberry ; by the roadside catnip and 
yellow dock ; in her garden she raised sage, rue and 
wormwood, while the meadows yielded her flagroot 
and rosemary. With the aid of these roots and herbs 
she would care for the bruised and wounded, and sell 
salve and ointments. Every one knew her as an 
honest, simple-hearted dame, whose tears were ready 
to flow at a tale of suffering, and whose hands were 
always i"eady to help the needy. 

In the year 1875, Philip L. Seger died at the 
advanced age of eighty-three. He was born in Mar- 
blehead, January i, 1792, and came to Swampscott 
in 1800, and lived at the old farm-house on the Mudge 
estate. The old elm near was set out in 1740? ^nt^ 
was one of the landmarks of " the olden time." Mr. 
S. attended school at the old school-house, located in 
what was called Fresh Marsh Lane, Lynn. In earl}^ 
manhood he learned the shoemaker's trade, afterwards 
engaged in fishing. By request of Michael Collins, 
of Eastham, he went to that town and taught him to 
make the first shoes manufactured in that place. Mr. 
Collins, who is quite an old man, visited his instructor 
during the last year of his life. In the war of 18 12, 
John Proctor was drafted to perform military duty, 
but by mutual consent Mr. Seger went as substitute, 
and served in a company which went from Lynn, un- 
der command of Captain Samuel Mudge. They were 
quartered at Salem Neck. Mr. Seger was promoted 
to a Sergeant, and afterward was bearer of dispatches, 
lie lived for many years with the family of Richard 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



L. Hanford. At his decease his remains were de- 
posited in Eastern Burial Ground, Lynn. 

Ei:>enezer Weeks first came to Swampscott in the 
year 1805, and lived on what is now the " Rowe " 
farm. He afterwards kept a hotel near Blaney's 
Beach. His nephew, Ebenezer Weeks, Jr., who 
was born in 1802, came to Swampscott with a pack 
on his back in the year 181S. He married his cousin, 
Mary E. Weeks, in 1S31. Soon after his arrival, 
Mr. Weeks learned the trade of shoemaking, and 
worked in Mark Phillips' shoe shop, on Burrill Street. 
He boarded with Mr. Mears, at the old Mudge farm- 
house, paying $1.50 per week. Captain L. D. Story 
was at that time working for Mr. Mears, for his food 
and lodging, sleeping on a straw bed up stairs. 
There was no spare bed for Mr. Weeks, and on the 
afternoon of his arrival they went to the woods in the 
rear of the house, cut down some cedar trees and 
brought them to the house ; there they cut off the 
limbs but not the bark, bored some holes for a cart 
rope to go through to fiisten them together, braced the 
legs with nails and boards, and placed the affair in a 
little room on the first floor. The time consumed in 
making the whole was less than two hours. After 
Mr. Weeks' marriage he engaged in the lobster busi- 
ness at East Boston. He was a very successful busi- 
ness man and much respected. He died leaving a 
large property. 

Thomas DoUiver boarded for many years with 
Ebenezer Weeks ; he had lost the use of his lower 



174 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

limbs, and could only move about by means of a 
chair in which he sat. He was a shoemaker by 
trade, and was much respected by all who knew him. 
At his death he gave to Mary E. Weeks, by ivill^ a 
lot of land on Bhiney Street, where the vestry of the 
First Congregational Church now stands. 

Captain Nathaniel Blanchard was born in Thetford, 
Vt., moved to Lynn while a boy, and learned the 
shoemaker's trade, working at it for four or five years, 
after which he followed fishing, acting as master most 
of the time. He married Alice P. Bkney, April 2, 
1S20. Served in the war of 181 2-14. When the old 
militia system was in vogue he commanded a com- 
pany in the eastern district of Lynn. He served on 
the board of Selectmen before Swampscott was set 
oft' as a town. Ocean Street, Lynn, was laid out at 
this time. 

When the California fever broke out he engaged 
with others in fitting out a vessel to go thither. When 
he built his brick house, the first in town, he went out 
fishing one morning in his dory, caught a load offish, 
took them to Boston, sold them, and came home with 
the dory laden with stone caps, which were placed 
over the windows in his new house. He died in 
June, 1S71 ; his widow still lives in the brick house on 
Humphrey Street, and is a very smart old lady, who 
has many a tale to relate of the days gone by. 

On election days it was customary for the Swainp- 
scott fishermen to go to Lynn to cast their ballots. A 
good description of their proceedings being given in 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 1 7o 



^'Johnson's Sketches of Lynn," I quote from it briefly. 
There being an uncertainty as to who was elected 
Moderator, by a vote by voice, they would be obliged 
to pass through an opening in a railing and be 
counted. 

"At this stage of the meeting, perhaps the ' un- 
terrified ' from Swampscott had not arrived ; but 
before the 'yeas' had all passed through, the martial 
drum and piercing fife announced the coming of the 
sturdy fishermen hosts that never marched except to 
victory. Then a rush of boys — some of them pretty 
well grown up — would pour out at the door, and 
down over the stairs to meet the ' old guard.' Soon 
the heavy tread of fishing boots would be heard — 
there were no rubber boots then, and probably not a 
pair of French boots were seen in the whole lot — 
and the invincible army whose presence was a pre- 
sage of victory marched into the hall with ^Captain 
Natty' (Nathaniel Blanchard) at his head. Ne}^, as 
he led the Imperial Guard might have had more 
horses shot under him and his face more blackened 
with powder, but he never marched with a prouder 
step, when his great captain gave the destinies of 
Europe into his hands on the field of Waterloo, than 
' Captain Natty ' as he led the one hundred, more or 
less, to the bloodless victories that never ended in a 
Waterloo or a Peterloo ; for this veteran never 
blanched before any danger on the land or on the sea 
— especially on the sea. Then the cry would go up, 
not exactly the cry of Winkelried's ' Make way for 



176 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Liberty!' but one animated with the same spirit — 
' Make way for Swampscott !' Then they would 
march in solid phalanx, solid as practicable, through 
the passage in front of the ' calf pen,' and the destinies 
of the day were sealed." 

VV^illiam Marshall, of Swampscott, born May 26, 
17S9, died March 9, 1870. Betsy, his wife, was born 
December 15, 1792, and died October 17, 1877. 
They were married in 1828, and lived in the Mar- 
shall House, on the Point. During the early part of 
his life he manufactured shoes, and would frequently 
start on foot, before the sun was up, with his bag of 
shoes over his shoulder, for the Boston market. In 
warm weather he was often called upon to furnish 
fish dinners for parties, who came from other places 
to enjoy the cooling breezes at the seashore. Daniel 
Webster was at one time his guest, and hundreds en- 
joyed the repasts prepared under his direction, during 
the forty years of his stay at the Point. About the 
year 183s, some of his summer guests presented him 
the pleasure yacht "Tom." He was a skillful gun- 
ner, and often "feathered his own nest" from the 
down from the breasts of birds that fell before his 
skill. He spent the last few years on his farm at 
North Bend, Lynn. 

Deacon James Wheeler, the veteran mail carrier, 
was married January 29, 1S33, to Adeline Briggs. 
They lived in the only house on Blaney Street at that 
time. In 1S58, Mr. Wheeler had a large tent erected 
near the corner of Humphrey and Phillips Streets, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 177 

and there gave a first-class concert, the first of the 
kind in town. Land on Blaney Street was valued at 
thirty dollars per acre in 1S45, while now (18S4) it 
would cost thousands. Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler cele- 
brated the fiftieth anniversary of their marriage on 
January 29, 18S3, at which tiine their friends gathered 
by hundreds to wish them joy and prosperity, as they 
journeyed onward toward the seventy-fifth. 

Thomas Stone resided at Blaney's Beach, not far 
from where the club-room now stands, but on the 
opposite side of the street. He was a very strict man 
in all his dealings, and died at the advanced age- of 
seventy-two years, leaving many descendants and 
friends to mourn his loss. 

Dr. J. B. Holder, son of Aaron L. Holder, of 
Lynn, completed his education as physician and sur- 
geon at the " Harvard Medical School." He first 
practiced medicine in Swampscott, in 1S46, and was 
the first doctor in the village. He built a pretty cot- 
tage, with diamond-shaped windows, adjoining what 
is now the summer residence o*f Charles E. Morrison, 
on Winnepurkitt Hill. This hill was named for 
Winnepurkitt, who, at the time Francis Ingalls built 
his log house, was only thirteen years old. He was 
the brother of Montowampate, and succeeded him as 
Sachem of this range. This hill was his fiivorite 
place of residence, having one of the finest lookouts 
on the entire shore. He died in 1684 and his wife in 
the following year. Dr. Holder practiced for several 
years very successfully in the village, but his practice 
25 



178 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

having largely increased in the surrounding country, 
he found it necessary to remove to the corner of Na- 
hant and Sagamore Streets, where he built a cottage, 
which may still be seen there. In 1859, ^^ ^^^^ ^^^S' 
gestion of Prof. Agassiz, he was appointed post- 
surgeon at Port Jefferson, on the Florida coast, 
where he remained some years. One important ob- 
ject gained in the appointment was the study of the 
marine zoology of those semi-tropical waters, for the 
benefit of science, under the auspices of the Smith- 
sonian Institute and the Agassiz Museum. On the 
breaking out of the Rebellion, Dr. Holder was ap- 
pointed surgeon at the military prison at the Dry 
Tortugas, where he continued in charge until after the 
close of the war. In 1866, he was ordered to Fortress 
Monroe as medical officer of that post, then reorgan- 
ized as the artillery school. After serving three and 
one-half years at that noted place he accepted an in- 
vitation to join in building up the Museum of Natural 
History in Central Park, New York. The success of 
the institution being secured he was appointed per- 
manent Curator of Zoology, which position he still 
holds to the satisfaction of all. 

In the fall of 1859, ^*'- William B. Chase, then a 
young man of twenty-six, located in Swampscott. 
He had previously been practicing medicine some 
three years in the State of Vermont, and was a 
graduate of the Jefferson Medical College of Phila- 
delphia. At that time Swampscott was a town of 
about one thousand two hundred inhabitants. The 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 179 

doctor then held full sway as far as doctors in town 
were concerned, as he was the only one located in it, 
and indeed he soon discovered that he had chosen 
wisely, for the same day of his arrival he was called 
upon to pay a visit to his first patient. Success fol- 
lowed, and the doctor has met with his full tide of 
business, and has grown gray in the service up to 
1884. About the year 1869, Dr. Chase entered into 
partnership in the drug business with J. P. Porter, in 
what was known as the old " Widger Block." After 
a short time he bought out the business, and continued 
there until the new " Towns Block" was built, into 
which he removed and where he still remains. 

A physician's life is by no means an easy one, and 
perhaps an incident or two in the doctor's experience 
may be, if not instructive, at least amusing to the 
readers of this article. Some years ago when Thos. 
Widger, Jr., was keeper of the lighthouse on Egg 
Rock, one stormy day in mid-winter, the schooner 
"Champion" as she rounded the island, was hailed 
from the Rock by the signal of distress, and " heav- 
ing to," was informed that a doctor must be sent out 
immediately. The order was complied with, and in 
an incredibly short space of time a dory was pushed 
off from the Swampscott shore with Dr. Chase on 
board; The sea was running high and one boat had 
already been overturned in the surf, in the efforts 
made to put off, while the old fisherman who alone 
was in it, and who was no less a personage than the 
old man Widger himself, drenched through, had been 



180 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

obliged to put back to shore to get a dry change of 
clothing. When the schooner, after some difficulty, 
for the wind was blowing a gale, came to, oft' the 
rock, the waves were running dangerously high, the 
white surf breaking with a terrific roar on the rock- 
bound island, threatening every instant to engulf the 
two small boats which put out from the schooner, the 
one as protection to the other should any accident 
occur. The long stairs leading to the top of the rock 
were covered with ice, and the fishermen though 
inured to the dangers of the deep, found some dif- 
ficulty in securing a foothold, but waiting for a favor- 
able moment in which to take advantage of the tide, 
and calling to the doctor to lie down in the bottom of 
the boat, they sprang upon the slippery steps and 
with a mighty lurch the boat, assisted by the light- 
keeper who stood waiting to receive them, was 
drawn far up out of the tremendous sea, which with 
every advancing tide, was breaking around them. 
The feelings which the doctor experienced at that 
moment he says can never be described ; he had been 
in many serious situations before, but never when 
he felt so perfectly helpless as that moment in which, 
suspended at an angle of forty-five degrees, with his 
heels elevated in air and water dashing over his 
prostrate form, the thunder of the elements around 
him, he found himself performing a feat which a few 
hours previous he would have deemed simply im- 
possible. The descent was attended with fully as 
much danger as had been the ascent, but this time the 



OP SWAMPSCOTT. 181 



doctor was right side up with care, and braced himself 
for the sudden Uuxh into this frightful sea, which bore 
them at last in safety to the schooner awaiting them. 

In telling us some of the interesting reminiscences 
of his professional experience, the doctor gave us one 
too good to be lost. While practicing in Vermont he 
was called to attend the wife of a farmer who had 
previously buried four wives. This one shared the 
fate of the others, and the morning after her death, as 
the doctor was passing the house the old man came 
hurrying out to the gate with his handkerchief to his 
eyes in great distress. " Oh doctor, doctor !" said he, 
" she is gone ; what shall I do.^" fairly sobbing aloud 
in his grief; then suddenly brightening — ''Do you 
know, doctor, where I could get another?" About 
three weeks afterward, as the doctor was driving that 
way, he met the old man with a one-horse wagon 
load of household goods, on the top of which perched 
a woman ; he had secured number six, and was 
bringing her home. 

Dr. Chase belongs to the Masonic fraternity, having 
taken thirty-three degrees in all, including the ancient 
Scottish Rite. 

Dr. Chase married Miss Marietta C. Bement, of 
Ashfield, in 1859 ; they have two accomplished daugh- 
ters — Miss Lettie, Professor of Music, and Miss 
Louie, Professor of Elocution. 

John Chapman a well-known house carpenter ; has 
built many first-class houses during the past forty 
years. 



182 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Joseph Stanley will long be remembered for his 
many good deeds for more than forty-two years. 
He has held many town offices. 

William H. Holden died at the age of fifty-six years 
and eight months, in Swampscott, in the year 1877. 
He was born in Middlesex, Washington County, Vt. 
In his early days he assisted his father on the farm, 
and as Town Clerk, Town Treasurer and Registrar of 
Deeds, it being the custom in Vermont to register all 
deeds in the Town Clerk's office. Mr. Holden suc- 
ceeded his father, Horace Holden, in the various 
positions, and filled them acceptably until his re- 
moval to Massachusetts. The offices of Town Clerk, 
Treasurer and Registrar has been held in the Holden 
family upwards of fifty years, a brother of the de- 
ceased now filling them. Mr. Holden was associated 
with his son, George H. Holden — who was Treasurer 
of the town of Swampscott, in 1883 — ''^ ^^""^ grocery 
business for the last five years preceding his death. 
He left a wife and one son, now of the firm of Geo. 
H. Holden & Co., grocers. 

John P. Palmer died at his residence in Swamp- 
scott, December 18, 1883, at the age of sixty-eight 
years and six months. He was born in Woodstock, 
N. H. Mr. Palmer informed the writer that after pay- 
ing his toll across Charlestown Bridge to Boston he 
only had two cents left in his pocket. In connection 
with his brother, D. R. Palmer, he was engaged in 
the grocery business, Boston, for thirty years. His 
public spirit led to his prominence in town aflairs, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 183 



which he maintained up to the time of his decease. 
The prompt filling of the town's quota during the 
war, 1 86 1 -5, was largely due to his energy and per- 
severance. He had been Chairman of the Board of 
Selectmen, and held other important offices in the 
town. He was prominently connected with the free- 
ing of the old Salem turnpike, which was built in 
1804, also the building of the Swampscott Branch 
Railroad to Marblehead. Mr. Palmer married a 
daughter of James Phillips, who survived him but a 
few weeks, leaving two daughters. 

Of the residents of Swampscott who have rounded 
out the age of three score and ten, are Capt. John 
B. Harris and wife, natives of Marblehead. Married 
November 22, 1829. They settled at Lynn (now 
Swampscott), August, 1833. They can both lay 
claim to service of their ancestry in the battle of 
Bunker Hill, through William Harris who served in 
Capt. Samuel R. Trevett's Company, and Andrew 
Leavitt, grandfather of Mrs. Harris, of whom the 
records of Capt. Crosby's Company, now on file at 
Concord, N. H., gives as property lost during the 
battle of Bunker Hill, "A pair of stockings by Andrew 
Leavitt." 

Capt. Harris has followed the sea all his life, and 
now in his eighty-third year is as fond as ever of " a 
life on the ocean wave." John B. Harris, born April 
27, 1802, Marblehead ; Mrs. Amy (Leavitt) Harris, 
born March 15, 1810, Marblehead. 

Philander Holden, son of William Holden, born in 



184 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Middlesex, Vermont, April 27, 1S12, and located in 
Swampscott, October 17, 1S50, and for nearly thirty 
years owned the corner of Humphrey and Redington 
vStreets, where he carried on the grocery, provision 
and produce business. Since Mr. Holden has been 
in town, he has held the offices of School Committee, 
Selectman, Treasurer, Collector and Assessor. 

Mr. Holden's grandfather, William Holden, was 
born at Groton, Mass., March 3, 1728. He entered 
the Colonial Army at a very early age, and was in 
many important engagements in the French War, 
among them the surrender of Fort William Henry, at 
Lake George, the capture of Louisburg and Qiiebec. 
About 1760, he settled in Charleston, N. H., and was 
a Captain in the American Army, through the Revo- 
lutionary War. 

W. D. Brackett, a wxll-known citizen of Ipswich, 
and formerly prominent as a business man in Swamp- 
scott, died of pneumonia, April, 1884, at the age of 
seventy-two years. He was born at Wellfleet, Mass., 
was engaged in business in Swampscott some twen- 
ty-tive years, and retired to a tarm at Ipswich, Mass., 
some twenty years ago, since which time he has been 
active in town and church affairs, holding the office of 
vSelectman, and being a Trustee of the Ipswich Sav- 
ings Bank. He was well-known in connection with 
the Asbury Grove Camp Meeting, and was highly 
esteemed in his own and the neighboring towns. He 
leaves a family of five children. 

Nehemiah Lee, born in Moultonborough, N. H., 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 185 

in 1S26 ; came to Swampscott, where he resided from 
1S44 to 1852, when he commenced the carpenter and 
building- business, in which he was successful. Moved 
to Lynn in January, 1859, where he carried on the 
same kind of business, erecting some of the finest 
structures in that city. Mr. Lee has since engaged 
in the lumber trade, and is a dealer in wood and coal, 
doing a thriving business. He has held many im- 
portant offices of trust, and has a beautiful home on 
West Baltimore Street, where he now resides. 

Captain Lorenzo D. Story, son of Phineas and 
Rosanna Story, was born in Essex, June 11, 180S. 
His father removed to Swampscott in 181 6, and lived 
in the old ''Story" house, corner of Humphrey 
Street and Story's Court. He graduated at the little 
red school-house at Whale's Beach, E. B. Phillips 
being a member of the same class. Captain Story 
then lived with Mr. Means, working for his food and 
lodging, at the Mudge farm. He said that pork, cab- 
bage and pumpkin pies, baked in large earthen milk- 
pans, were among the chief articles on the dinner 
table. Ebenezer Weeks, Jr., roomed with him, and 
worked in Phillips' shoe shop. The place bought by 
Mr. Story's father was formerly owned by Eben Tar- 
box, the name being afterward changed to Thorndike. 
The house where Mr. Thorndike was married was 
very small. He made shoes, his wife closing them, 
as it was called, by use of an awl and wax-end, the 
work being securely held by a clamp placed between 
the knees. When Phineas Story purchased the place 
36 



186 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

in Swampscott, there were only fourteen houses be- 
tween the "Point" and Stacey's Brook, and one at 
Tufts' Corner, now near the junction of Lewis and 
Fayette Streets. Captain L. D. Story married when 
quite young; he built the "Wilson" House on the 
Clift', at the end of Story's Court, which is now the 
property of James A. Knowlton ; he also built the 
house owned by Colonel Farwell, on Proctor's Court. 
Captain Story was one of the men who went to Dux- 
bury, to purchase the "Jane," so well-known here. 
In 1S26, could be seen on the coast at Marshfield, 
near the farm of Daniel Webster, two shanties, on 
the bank of Cut River, which emptied itself into the 
ocean at that place. They were the property of 
Ebenezer Thorndike & Company, lobster dealers, of 
Charlestown, Mass. They were the temporary homes 
of twelve men, six residing in each, and among them 
Captain L. D. Story. They were a jolly crew. 
Lyman Sears, afterwards captain of the "Jane," and 
Seth Peterson, who was Webster's right-hand man 
in his fishing and gunning trips, and one of the 
bearers at Webster's funeral, were among them. 
Peterson was the recipient of many favors from Web- 
ster, among the gifts being a hat. Story and Webster 
wore the same size hats. One evening, after their 
work was done and all were assembled near the huts, 
Captain Story caught up Webster's hat, and having a 
very retentive memory, and a good voice, he mounted 
a hogshead and delivered one of Webster's speeches 
to his small but appreciative audience. He was 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 187 

greatly applauded, and Peterson laughed heartily, 
saying, " You have outdone Webster himself." Story 
at once retorted, " How can I help it, when I have 
Webster's words in my mouth and Webster's hat on 
my head ?" Captain Story was a great lover of music, 
and was a fine tenor singer, and his daughter being a 
good musician, many were the pleasant evenings 
passed by the young folks of the town at his house. 
He attended the first concert at which the famous 
Jennie Lind sang, in Boston, paying $5 for an admis- 
sion |:icket. He moved with his family to Magnolia, 
in March, 1865, where he kept a grocery store, and 
was the first postmaster, which position he held for 
many years. His home was the seat of genuine hos- 
pitality, and good cheer. He had quite a genius for 
rhyming, and many persons can bear witness to his 
skill with the pen. Although a great lover of "the 
weed," he never allowed any one to smoke in his 
store, saying the smoke tainted the goods. He died 
December 5, 1883, in the seventy-sixth year of his 
age, leaving a number of sons and daughters. His 
remains now rest in Swampscott Cemetery. 

Mark G. Phillips was a highly respected citizen of 
Swampscott, who passed away in 1884 ^^ ^^^^ ^S^ of 
eighty-two years, his fimeral being attended from the 
Congregational Church. He was generally known as 
" Uncle Mark." In his earlier days he engaged in 
the manufacture of shoes on Burrill Street. He was 
so eminent!}' just and kindly in his dealings with 
those whom he employed, that in speaking of him 



188 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

they often quoted approvingly the Scripture words : 
" Mark tlie perfect man." 

Daniel Roberts was born at Danvers, Mass., in 
1821, on the farm of Hon. Daniel P. King. He re- 
mained with his father, who moved to Tamworth, 
N.H., until he was fourteen years of age, when he 
took his small pack of homespun clothing upon his 
back, and started alone on foot for Massachusetts. 
At last he arrived at Breed's Island Farm, and let 
himself to Mr. Breed, the owner. The stone base- 
ment still remains near Winthrop Station, on the side 
hill. After remaining a month he learned that his 
master was slow pay, so he packed his bundle and 
started for Lynn, leaving his wages behind. Arriving 
at Lynn, he stopped at the Village House, Woodend, 
over night. The bar-tender came from Tamworth, 
so they soon became acquainted with each other and 
had a pleasant chat. Next morning he started for 
Marblehead, and called on Hathaway, who after- 
wards had charge of Rev. Parson Bartlett's farm, and 
let himself for $15 per month until November. Then, 
with his wages in his pocket, he started for Tam- 
worth, on foot, and, after a long but pleasant walk, 
reached his father's house, where he attended school 
until he had finished the winter term, and then, in the 
spring, came back to Lynn again and let himself to 
John Newhall, near the corner of Broad and Atlantic 
Streets, upon the farm, when he cut the winter's 
wood in Lynn woods ; his stent was one cord per day. 
On the Sabbath, Mr. Newhall invited him to attend 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 189 



the service at the Friends' Church ; sq Mr. Roberts 
went with him, but thought it was quite still com- 
pared to what he had been accustomed to in Tam- 
worth. He remained with Mr. Newhall two years. 
In 1S45, Mr. Roberts married Miss Lucinda Wash- 
burn, of Tamworth, N. H., and commenced taking 
boarders at Farmer Phillips' farm-house. Mr. Rob- 
erts has one son, William H., who is in the Swamp- 
scott and Boston express business, and one daughter, 
Mrs. Frank F. Stanley, living on Burrill Street. Mr. 
Roberts drew water from a well that had supplied the 
old house for over two centuries before, with 

" The old oaken bucket, the iron-bound bucket, 
The moss-covered bucket that hung in the well." 

The following are a few names of the people who 
spent the summer with Mr. Roberts while he took 
boarders: Hon. Rufus Choate, George Pratt, James 
Buck, for eight summers ; Reuben L, Wade, George 
Tuckerman, M. H. Ballon, of Boston ; John Silsbee, 
Hon. L. Saltonstall and Richard Fay, of Salem. Mr. 
Roberts lived with James Phillips in 1844, and carted 
hogsheads of water by the aid of oxen, to Clambake 
Hill, for the thoi^sands who made it a resort. In 
1S46, Mr. Roberts, while on Jonathan Phillips' farm, 
raised one thousand five hundred barrels of onions 
and carted them to Boston in an ox cart drawn b}- 
four oxen. He used to start in the evening, in order 
that he might be at the market at first dawn of day 
and be ready for customers. He was the first farmer 



190 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

who carted onions to Boston market from Swamp- 
scott. The onions brought $1.50 per barrel. 

William P. M. Martin was born in Marblehead in 
1800, and was son of Ebenezer and Jane Martin. Mr. 
Martin built a large boarding-house, the " Anawan," 
on the lot between Mr. Bates' estate and the street. 
Rehoboth, a place ten miles from Providence, memo- 
rable on account of the capture of Anawan, August 
28, 1676. Anawan was the last of King Philip's 
chieftains, and it was for him that Mr. Martin named 
his house. Franklin Haven and J. D. Bates were its 
first two boarders. The Anawan was sold to J. D. 
Bates, who moved the building to the spot where the 
old Ocean House used to be and called it the Beach 
House. Mr. Ford and afterwards Mr. Phillips rented 
it. In 1854, Mr. Bates rented it to S. H. and E. N. 
Wardwell for two years, when E. N. Wardwell 
bought and ran it until 1875. He moved it back, en- 
larged it from time to time during the years 1866-69, 
and gave it the name of the Ocean House. The cot- 
tage on the front side was formerly a part of the 
Ocean House. R. VV. Carter, of Boston, bought the 
Ocean House of H. F. Pitman, of Marblehead, in 
1881, and made many improvements. The house 
was burned in September, 1883, at a loss of about 
$80,000. In July, 1884, the New Ocean House was 
built, with all modern conveniences. 

Hon. Harvey Jewell spent more than twenty sum- 
mers at Whale's Beach. 

May 28, 1845, Joseph W. Millett was accidentally 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 191 



killed while blasting rocks on Clambake Hill. He 
married a daughter of Captain (Sir) Joseph Fuller, 
and left a large family. 

Fitzwilliam Griffin was a fisherman, of Swamp- 
scott, and was one of the fence viewers in 1852, the 
first 3^ear of Swampscott's incorporation as a town. 
He was a man of large stature, and peculiar in his 
looks and ways ; he was very set and straightforward 
in all his dealings. It was remarked by some who 
knew him that his profile greatly resembled that of the 
^' Old Man of the Mountains." He lived to a good 
old age. 

James Abbot first came to Swampscott in August, 
1S39, fi'O"^"^ Rockport, where he was born March 15, 
1786. In the winter of 1S66, he was eighty years 
old, and working for Captain Thomas Hadley, split 
four hundred quintals of fish. He passed away 
June 13, 1868, aged eighty-two years, leaving many 
friends to cherish his memory. His brother, William 
Tarr Abbott is now living at Rockport, aged ninety- 
six years, and is still hale and hearty. 

Joseph Harding died in the year 1872, being nearly 
ninety-seven years of age. He was the oldest Free 
Mason in the country, having been initiated in Adams 
Lodge, of VVellfleet, in the year 1800. 

Mrs. Sally Gilbert, died at Swampscott, November 
9, 1878, at the ripe old age of ninety-five years. She 
was the widow of Captain Jonathan Gilbert, of Glou- 
cester, who was for many years engaged in the West 
India trade ; he died in 1845, after which time she re- 



192 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



moved to Swainpscott, residing with Capt. A. C. New- 
hall and George Gilbert until her death. She was a na- 
tive of Ipswich. She was a smart old lady, and her 
many friends greatly enjoyed a social chat with her. 
She remembered seeing Gen. Washington at Ipswich. 
Phineas Story, better known as " Father Story," 
was born in Chebacco, Mass. (now Essex), May 4, 
17S3, and on July 13, 1804, was united in marriage 
with Rosanna Burnham. They brought up a family 
of three sons and six daughters. Father Story lived 
in the old " Story" house, which until recently stood 
on the now (1884) vacant lot, corner of Humphrey 
Street and Story's Court, and died at an advanced 
age. For many years in early life he followed the 
fishing business; afterward he peddled fish in Lynn, 
and with a zeal and promptitude worthy of imitation. 
In hot or cold weather, rain or shine, he at dawn 
would load his hand-cart witli the best of fish brought 
in by the dory men, and start on his weary way to the 
homes of his customers in Lynn and West Lynn ; 
after disposing of his fish he would go to the post 
office, then at the south end of Federal Street, West 
Lynn, and receiving the Swampscott letters, would 
distribute them after reaching home, charging two 
cents per letter. He continued to deliver such letters 
from Lynn until 1846, when a post office was estab- 
lished in Swampscott. Then he remarked that he 
had " lost his new-milch cow," referring to the letters. 
Year after year he followed his honorable calling, the 
sound of his horn being eagerly listened for. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 193 



i\lexancler Greenlaw, was born in Scotland, and 
after coming to these shores, in 1S26, was a florist, 
and for ten years was gardener on the estates of J. 
D. Bates and Mr. Jeffries. In 1868, he went to Bos- 
ton and engaged in business as a florist, and has met 
with success. 

Joshua P. Small, born in Truro, Mass., December 
2"]^ 1823 ; moved to Swampscott, in 1849. ^^ ^^^ ^*S^ 
of nine years he first engaged in fishing, which call- 
ing he has successfully followed up to the present 
time. He now resides on Phillips Street (1885). 

Jasper Emerson, who is so favorably known in 
Swampscott, opened a meat market in Salem, in 
i860, and in 1863, first started a route in Swamp- 
scott, and to the present day continues in the busi- 
ness. 

'^ The Clifi' House," Jas. A. Knowlton ; '^ Cove 
House," Jonathan Blaney ; " Blaney House," Wm. 
R. Blaney, have for many years been fiworably 
known to summer visitors. 

Eben Martin is an old and respected citizen, who- 
has for many years engaged in fishing. 

George Towns, who is a native of Keene, N. H., 
moved to Swampscott, in 1856, and engaged in the 
express business to Boston, continuing in that and the 
ice business for sixteen years, and is living at present 
near the hay scales. 

Benj. J. Lindsey opened a store for the sale of dry 
goods in 1869. He has acted as Town Clerk for 
seven years. 
27 



194 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

In 1877^ George E. Gilbert opened a dry goods 
store in Town's Block. 

Charles E. Durgin, Calvin Tucker, L. D. Pettingill, 
S. M. Shattuck and George H. Holden & Co., are all 
well known as dealers in fine groceries and provisions. 

November 26, 1S84, Captain Miles Blanchard, shot 
ten ducks, among then a king eider duck, a very rare 
bird in this vicinity. He has had the bird stutled and 
mounted. 

During the year 1S84, Captain Thomas Stanley 
shot five hundred and twenty sea birds. 

In 1870, the writer had a list of twenty-one persons 
in the town, whose ages averaged eighty-four years 
and three months. Captain Joseph Harding, aged 
ninety-seven, was the oldest, and Samuel Tufts, the 
youngest, aged seventy-eight. At the present writing 
all have passed away. 

Within a year, George Stanley, F. L. ^'oung, and 
one other person, have been killed on the railroad, 
just east of the bridge beyond the Swampscott depot. 
All having been struck by the railroad train. 

September 25, 1884, a whirlwind suddenly swept 
down Winnepurkitt Hill, Swampscott. Mr. John 
Stanley and Deacon J. B. Richardson, a fisherman of 
seventy-six years, were standing near the fish-houses 
on Blaney's Beach, and the hats of each were blown 
ofi'and down the beach into the water. At the same 
time the water roughened and three dorys were over- 
turned. The air was filled with sand, and for a mo- 
ment swept in all directions. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 195 



In the year iSoo, Mark Phillips' father built a shoe 
shop near what is now the summer residence of Ari- 
och Wentworth, of Boston. 

Nathaniel Fuller was drowned by falling from a 
fishing boat, oft' Phillips Point, July 26, 1800. He 
was thirty-eight years of age. 

Caleb Strong was the sixth Governor of Massachu- 
setts, under the new charter. His son married a 
daughter of Sherift' Allen, then High Sherift' of Essex 
County, and the Governor often visited the farm at 
Swampscott, which was known as the "Strong farm ;" 
it is now owned by the heirs of the late John P. 
Palmer. 

Sir William Proctor resided on Cherry Street, Up- 
per Swampscott, for many years. Being sick in his 
old age, he was removed from his own room, which 
was unplastered and unfinished, to a finished cham- 
ber ; here he remained a few days, but then he asked 
to return to his old room, saying, he ^ wanted pure air 
to breathe." The request was granted. 

Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Richardson, of Swampscott, 
observed their golden wedding, April 14, 1S85, by a 
pleasant family celebration. There was a large gath- 
ering of friends, and among other souvenirs the two 
hundred members of the Congregational society pre- 
sented a book containing their autographs. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

SWAMPSCOTT AS A WATERING PLACE. 

Sea Shore Resort iii Ancient Times. 



The custom of spending the sultry months of the 
year on shore, or mountain, has prevailed from very 
ancient times. So early as the days of the first Per- 
sian monarchy, the king and court would leave Susa 
in the hot season and go away to the highlands and 
cooler air of Persipolis, or Ecbotana. In the flourish- 
ing days of the Roman Empire the magnificent villas 
of the Senators dotted the coast of beautiful Cam- 
pania. Baiai in the northern indentation of the Bay 
of Naples was a celebrated resort. The magnificence 
of its palaces was only equalled by the dissipation of, 
some of its noble and imperial visitors. Here Nero 
had a palace. It was also a favorite resort of tlie poet 
Horace. Multitudes from the imperial city thronged 
for refreshment to the nearest shores at the moutli of 
the Tiber, Minucius Filix has left a charming little 
sketch of an excursion from Rome to the marine 
baths at Ostia, the port of the city. Minucius, who 
wrote about A. D. i66, was a Christian, and rcpre- 



SWAMPSCOTT. 197 



sents himself as accompanied by two companions, on 
the excursion, one a Christian, and the other a 
heathen, who enlivened the journey with a discussion 
which leads to the conversion of the former worship- 
per of stones. His object in going, he says, " is 
that my body may have a soothing and appropriate 
remedy for drying its humors, from the marine bath- 
ing, especially as the holidays of the courts at vintage 
time have released me from my cares." Conversing 
pleasantly the friends arrive at the sea, and are walk- 
ing on the broad and open beach. " There," he says, 
'•• the gently rippling way was smoothing the outside 
sands, as if it would leave them as a promenade ; 
and as the sea is always restless, even when the winds 
are lulled, it came up on the shore, although not 
with waves crested and foaming, yet with waves 
crisped and curling." What modern pen could 
better have characterized our sparkling waters of 
Swampscott as compared with the rolling waves of 
Newport.^ ''Just then !" he goes on, " we were ex- 
cessively delighted at its vagaries, as. on the very 
threshold of the water we were wetting the soles of 
our feet, while the wave now by turn approaching 
broke upon our feet, and now returning and retracing 
its course sucked itself back into itself." How like a 
scene to be witnessed any summer's day on our beach 
is the following: "When we came to that place 
where the little ships were drawn up, we saw some 
boys eagerly gesticulating as they played at throwing 
shells into the sea. This play is: To choose a shell 



198 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

from the shore, rubbed and made smooth by the toss- 
ing of the waves, to take hold of the shell in a hori- 
zontal position with the fingers, to whirl it along 
sloping, and as low down as possible upon the waves, 
that when thrown it may skim the back of the wave, 
or may swim as it glides along with a smooth im- 
pulse or may spring up as it cleaves the top of the 
waves and rise as if lifted up with repeated springs. 
That boy claimed to be conqueror whose shell went 
out farthest and leaped up most frequently." How 
early in modern times the practice of going to sum- 
mer resorts began, it would be hard, perhaps, to 
determine ; but, however early, it was only the re- 
suming of an ancient custom fallen unto desuetude, if 
at all, through the general decline of civilization dur- 
ing the dark ages. 

The old Ocean House, at the Point, after several 
years' occupancy, was burnt and the grounds looked 
desolate enough. Charles W. Galloupe purchased 
the place of Mrs. Catherine H. Fenno, in 1S64, for 
himself and other parties, James Beck, P. L. Everett 
and S. D. Nickerson. The land was sub-divided and 
conveyed by deed to these parties in 1S66. The site 
comprised twenty acres of rock, fiek], hillside and 
level meadow land, and there Mr. Galloupe decided to 
locate his abiding place for the summer. In time he 
caused a unique villa to be erected upon the most 
prominent part of this charming point, overlooking 
the sea and adjacent country. The house was fitted 
and furnished in excellent taste, and at the same time 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 199 



the work of renovating the grounds was commenced, 
imder the charge of that veteran nurseryman and hor- 
ticulturist, the hite Samuel C. Pitman. Ere long 
other cottages were erected : the heirs of John CoUa- 
more — Messrs. P. L. Everett, Dr. William R. Law- 
rence, of Longwood, who has a fine villa and about 
tive acres of land, and John T. Bradley, who has 
spent several summers at this point — are among 
the joint owners of the beautiful spot. Mr. Galloupe's 
grounds, are very noticeable, and he has on the 
premises a spacious and convenient conservatory, 
literally stacked with floral gems. 

" He who observes it ere lie passes on 
Pauses again; returns and gazes long 
That he may call it up when far away." 

The Lincoln House was built by S. H. Wardwell. 
It is pleasantly situated at the western end of Phillips 
Point, which extends a mile in length from east to 
west. Wardwell Brothers now run the place. 

Among the first who kept boarders at Blaney's 
Beach was Mrs. Jonathan Blaney, better known as 
"Aunt Betsey." In the summer of 1830, she kept 
boarders at the old house next to the Blaney House 
whicli was built in 1656. Mrs. Blaney had as board- 
ers Mrs. Dudley Hall, of Medford, and some others, 
and her price per week was $3, which was considered 
high, as the boarders often waited upon themselves. 
She kept boarders until within a few years of the 
time that she passed away, October 21, 1S61, at the 
age of ninety-seven years. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

S U M M E R RESIDENT S 



Walter Phillips, Jr., in 16S4, and J. Phillips and 
Henry Mayo, in 1693, owned the Point, but on March 
10, 1696, the last-named person sold the part which 
now comprises J. L. Little's estate, to Walter Phillips 
for £140. Phillips Point has been in the hands of 
the Phillips family from 1690 to 18S4. Mrs. Mary 
Phillips was the mother of Jonathan Phillips, known 
as "Farmer" Phillips, whose father's house has be- 
come a resort for summer visitors. As early as i777' 
William Allen, of the Boston Registry of Deeds 
office, on Court Street, and house at West Street, 
came down to Phillips Beach to board for the warm 
season of the year, wending his way through cart 
paths with many bars to let down and put up. At 
the time there were only five houses in the village. 
In 1779, Demmon Jarvis, of Boston, and in 1795? 
Joseph Wilson, came down to the point to board. 
Jonathan Phillips (" Farmer") was born in 1769, at 
Swampscott, and married Miss Susan Garney, of 
Marblehead, in 1815. She was born October 3i, 
1790, and died in Lynn, in i860, at the age of seventy 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 201 

years. Farmer Phillips was married when he was 
forty-six years old and his wife twenty-tive years old. 
He commenced taking boarders in his small house in 
1S15. When Farmer Phillips was a boy the first 
money he received was for wheeling ballast stones 
from Phillips Beach on board a lighter, in about 17S3. 
The beach has been from an early date, until 1S84, a 
place for many ballast lighters to procure beach stones 
for ships in Boston Harbor, but the law of 1884 pro- 
hibits them from doing so longer. It is a great source 
of relief for the fishermen, for oftentimes the lighters 
drew their nets upon the beach and destroyed them, 
and it also saves the beach from being further washed. 
The writer has seen an oil painting of the Phillips 
estate, done by a summer boarder, in about 1846, 
showing the beach with a small bath-house on it at 
about the same place as Mr. Little's bath-houses are 
at the present time. Mrs. Phillips is shown in the 
picture as beckoning to her husband, who is fishing 
just oft' the Point, to come home with the fish for 
dinner, for cod and haddock, feeding near the rock- 
bound shore, were very plenty in those days. Mrs. 
Phillips is represented as standing about where 
"Shingle Side Cottage" is now. The house and 
barn with the well having the moss-covered bucket 
attached to the long sweep, is also shown. 

During the summer of 1855, Joseph Ames, the art- 
ist, lived in the house of the writer, over his store and 
post office, on Black Will's Clift\ While there, he 
painted the celebrated picture, "Last Days of Daniel 
28 



202 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

Webster at Marshfield." Many copies of this paint- 
ing have been executed in steel, and now adorn many 
a house in the land. The artist borrowed the writer's 
old " slouch" hat for a model, and it is represented in 
the picture as held in the hand of John Taylor, the 
farmer. Beginning at the left of the picture, the fol- 
lowing-named persons are represented : Charles Hen- 
ry Thomas, Jacob LaRoy, Hon. Edward Courtis, 
Mrs. Daniel Webster, Mrs. James W. Paige, Samuel 
A. Appleton, James W. Paige, Hon. George Ash- 
mun, Hon. Rufus Choate, Peter Harvey, Fletcher 
Webster, Daniel Webster, Miss Caroline L. Apple- 
ton, Master Daniel Webster, Master Ashburton Web- 
ster, Mrs. Fletcher Webster, Miss Caroline Webster, 
Dr. J. Mason Warren, Dr. John Jeffries, Sarah (col- 
ored servant), John Taylor, farmer, Porter Wright. 
The spot where Webster reposes is upon elevated 
land overlooking the sea and his farm at Marshfield. 
The spot is retired and quiet, nothing being heard 
save the soothing dirge of the ocean and the answer- 
ing sighs of the wind. It is the spot of all others for 
his resting place. A stone bears these words : "Dan- 
iel Webster, born January i8, 1782 ; died October 24, 
1852." In his last speech on the fishery question, 
Mr. Webster exclaimed with a flashing eye and ges- 
ture full of meaning: "The fishermen shall be pro- 
tected, hook and line, bob and sinker." Nothing 
could have pleased his hearers better, and loud and 
long was the applause that followed. 

Wendell Phillips and family, in the summers of 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 203 



1865, '66, '6S and '69, boarded with Abner H^yford, 
Humphrey Square. Mrs. Phillips was an invalid, 
but enjoyed the fine landscape and sea view, which 
was not to be surpassed. In 1870, Mr. Phillips spent 
the summer with Z. King Harding, on Winnepurkitt 
Hill, and was much pleased with the sea-view and 
scenery from that place. The Baptist Church was 
built in 1873, and soon after, a course of lectures was 
begun to help pay for the church. The committee 
called upon Mr. P. and asked his price for one lecture. 
He replied $30 ; and after delivering the lecture, that 
amount was paid him. Several days after, he for- 
warded a check for this amount to the committee as a 
present to the church. Mr. Phillips died in Boston, 
February 3, 1884, at the age of seventy-two years. 

" Only the ashes of the just 
Smell sweet and blossom in the dust." 

In the days of the Ocean House, Ocean Street was 
considered a part of Swampscott, the summer water- 
ing place. Among the first to erect a summer cottage 
was Benjamin T. Reed, who purchased the land of 
Joseph Ingalls, in 1842, for $1500. An old resi- 
dent says that Mr. Reed was looking for a spot on 
which to locate, and saw Mr. Ingalls at work in his 
field making hay. Approaching him, Mr. Reed said, 
"Good afternoon, sir. Is this your land.^" "Yes, 
sir," was the answer. " Will you sell it.^" " Yes." 
"I will give you four hundred dollars per acre for it." 
Mr. Ingalls threw down his rake in astonishment, and 



204 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

asked " Do you mean it?" On being assured that the 
ofter was bona fide, Mr. Ingalls started for a lawyer 
to have the deed made at once, fearing that Mr. Reed 
would change his mind. The price was a large one 
at that time (1S43). The land is now worth $Sooo 
per acre (1884). Mr. Alexander, the artist, built the 
beautiful house now owned by Isaac Sweetser, of 
Boston. Judge Benjamin R. Curtis built the Blake 
summer cottage. George M. Barnard and Judge 
Curtis, of Boston, were among the first boarders at 
Phillips Point, Messinger House, and residence on 
Ocean Street. The next in order was George M. 
Barnard, who sold his property to James R. Law- 
rence, and Mr. Lawrence built a large house on the 
place. The estate is now owned by Wm. T. Hart, 
of Boston. Mr. Prescott built the house afterward 
owned by Charles H. Scott, of Hudson, N. Y., and 
now occupied by Mrs. Page, as a first-class boarding 
house. Hon. Leopold Morse spent his first summer 
in Swampscott, in 1866, at Bay Cottage, Ocean 
Street. He spent five summers near Whale's Beach. 
Joseph lasigi lived in his mansion on Ocean Street 
for many summers. It is now owned by Francis 
W. Breed, of Lynn. William B. Reynolds built a 
pretty cottage on this street, and after enjoying it 
several seasons, he went to Longwood and spent his 
remaining days. The house, much improved, is now 
occupied by Benji^min W. Currier, of Lynn. Na- 
thaniel Hooper had a fine estate which he sold to the 
late Silas Pierce, who occupied it thirteen summers. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 205 

The estate is now leased by J. B. Holden, of Boston. 
Royal S. Robbins, of the Waltham watch factory, 
has a fine estate ; the house was built by Judge Chas. 
Curtis, in 1S45. Mrs. J. M. Lander owns the stone 
house with about three acres of land. Hon. Henry 
L. Pierce is the owner of B. T. Reed's Westerly 
House, now rented by T. B. Aldrich, the poet. Dr. 
Fuller, of Charlestown, has a beautiful villa, and near 
by George H. Tinkham occupies Bellevue Cottage. 
Thomas Hall lived many summers at Ash Cottage, 
now occupied by his son-in-law, Mr. Brewer. In 
front of Ash Cottage stands the remains of an old ash 
tree planted over a hundred years ago, when Lewis 
Street was but a cart path, and the bay from Stacy's 
Brook to Red Rock could be seen from that path. 

Next in order we come to the imposing mansion on 
Whale's Beach, designed by Hunt, the distinguished 
New York architect, which was erected by Jacob M. 
Haskell. It is one of the handsomest and most con- 
venient along the North Shore, and the estate em- 
braces a large lot of land and an elegant stable on the 
opposite side of the street. This is now the property 
of Colonel Heiiry G. Parker, editor and proprietor of 
the well-known and popular Boston Saturday Even- 
ing Gazette^ now in its seventy-second year. It is 
the oldest journal in Boston, and a paper widely 
known and highly regarded for its ability and success. 
Colonel Parker had been accustomed to pass the sum- 
mer on the South Shore, but in 18S0, he found his 
way to .Swampscott, and for two summers hired the 



206 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

house of the late Hon. J. Thomas Stevenson. Then 
he purchased his present residence of Mr. Haskell, 
refitted and furnished it throughout, and has resided 
there three years. Now Colonel Parker has become 
a legal resident and votes in the town of Swampscott. 

Philo S. Shelton has one of the finest mansions on 
Whale's Beach. His first visit to Swampscott was in 
1836, at the old Ocean House at Phillip's Point. He 
has spent every summer but one in Swampscott since 
that time. That one summer he went to the South 
Shore, but the warm land breeze was so different from 
the cool sea breeze at Swampscott, that he decided to 
revisit Swampscott. He is the oldest summer resident 
of Swampscott. Thurlow Weed, of New York, 
while visiting Mr. Shelton, in 185 1, at Swampscott, 
caught a cod fish weighing sixty-seven pounds, which 
pleased him greatly. Some time later a private din- 
ner was in progress at the Astor House, N. Y., when 
Mr. Shelton chanced to visit that hotel. "You are 
just the man we want to see," said Colonel Stetson ; 
" at a dinner in that room are a dozen public men, all 
friends of yours, and a heavy bet is made that Weed 
did not catch a cod fish weighing fifty pounds." Mr. 
Shelton was called in and saved Mr. Weed from loss 
by announcing that he had been his guest when the 
cod was taken, and that iilstead of fifty pounds, it 
weighed sixty-seven pounds. 

G. S. Hall's parrot, " Butter Cup," Phillips Point, 
is known by all for the pretty songs it has sung for the 
last six years. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 207 

Ex-Gov. Gaston has a pretty Cottage on Woodbine 
Avenue. Weston Lewis also has a cottage on that 
avenue. At one time during the summer of 1883, 
his son walked from Hotel Vendome, Boston, to 
Mudge's gate, Swampscott, distance twelve miles, in 
two hours, thirty-four minutes. 

George Blackburn, 1S70, enjoyed his summer resi- 
dence on Proctor's Court, for many summers. Col. 
Farwell now occupies the place. 

C. P. Curtis lived with his father. Judge Curtis, in 
1845, on Ocean Street. After several summers he 
purchased, in 187 1, a place at the point, bordering on 
Whale's Beach, and made many improvements upon 
it. The celebrated dog, " Foam," is cared for on the 
place by George T. Melzard in the winter, but in the 
fall he attends his master on sporting excursions to tlie 
South. F. L. Richardson's first summer in Swamp- 
scott was in i860, and that summer he spent at the 
Highlands. In 1861, he rented Mrs. Rowe's cottage 
Black Will's Clift^, and has spent his summers there 
every year since. N. B. Gibbs and family have spent 
many summers at Blaney's cottage, and in 1880 at 
Waldo Thompson's cottage*. William Ropes and 
family rented the Blaney cottage in 1S57 ' ^^^ ^'^'^^ 
much interested in the welfare of the First Congre- 
gational Church, and built a vestry for the parish. 

In 1843, Gridley J. F. Bryant, of Boston, rented a 
cottage on Story's Court. He spent twenty-six sum- 
mers on the North Shore, twenty-four of which were 
at Swampscott and two at Nahant. Eleven summers 



208 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

he occupied Mudge's old farm house, which was built 
in 1634. John H. Rogers rented his first cottage in 
1S65, and in 1866 he bought a cottage on King's 
Beach, which he now occupies. Arioch Wentworth 
has a house on Burrill Street, which he has enjoyed 
for about twenty years. E. B. Hull has spent the 
greater part of his summers since 1871 in Swamp- 
scott. Rev. Dr. Parkman spent several summers in 
this town about the year 1847. ^^** George H. Gay- 
was a summer resident of Swampscott from 1856 to 
1866. He passed his first summer at the square, flat- 
roofed house, owned by William R. Blaney, in com- 
pany with hisf[ither-in-law, Dr. Winslow Lewis. He 
lived in the house the following summer. In 1868, 
he hired the old house now owned by Orlando R. 
Millett, where he continued to live until 1875. He 
passed the summers of 1S75 and 1876 in Grantville, 
and his last summer was spent in Swampscott, at a 
house belonging to Eben B. Phillips, on Atlantic 
Avenue, now occupied by Warren Phillips. Dr. Gay- 
was born March 23, 1833, and died August 12, 1878. 
Arthur Cheney lived during the summer of 1866 in 
the cottage owned by Joseph Blaney, next the Han- 
ford estate. In 1867, he occupied the estate which 
he bought of Gorham Gray, since beconie Hotel Bea- 
con ; he continued to live here until 1875. Dr. Wins- 
low Lewis lived in William R. Blaney's house in 
1866 and 1867, and his son-in-law, Arthur Cheney, 
from 1 868 to 1873 ; he lived in Nathaniel Blanchard, 
Jr.'s house in 1873 and 1874. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 209 



Hon. A. A. Ranney rented the Marshall cottage at 
Blaney's Beach for four years. Mr. Edward Alden 
has occupied his mansion on Winnepurkitt Hill many 
summers. G. Frank Brown now owns the E. B. 
Phillips estate. R. E. Demmons owns the Lee Cot- 
tage. Mr. Griffiths owns the Gray estate. C. H. 
iVllen has a pretty cottage at Phillips Point. Col. 
J. A. Ingalls and J. W. Chn ; nan have cottages on 
Blaney's Beach. Frederick Jones has spent many 
summers at D. H. Millett's residence. R. M. Field, 
manager of the Boston Museum, rented the Stanley 
Cottage. Oliver Ditson and fomily have spent a 
number of summers at the Lincoln House. W. E. 
James rented A. R. Bunting's cottage on Black Will's 
Cliff, four seasons. 

Col. Charles A. Stetson, who opened the Astor 
House, New York, in 1S37, was noted for gathering 
to his hotel distinguished travelers and business men, 
who wished a home while in the city. He has vol- 
umes of autographs of these gentlemen, and when he 
retired from hotel life he stored the volumes at his 
residence at " Woodside" farm, in Swampscott, for 
notice by future generations. Mrs. Lucy A. Stetson, 
his wife, died March 29, 1881. 

A southern lady, while driving through our woods 
during the summer, noticed several white birch trees. 
She had never seen anything of the kind before, so, 
turning to her companion, she exclaimed, " How 
very particular you northerners must be to take the 
trouble to whitewash all these trees !" 
29 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

YACHTING. 

Origin of Regattas. — Noted Tachts. 



Venice is the home and birth-phice of regattas, 
whence they were introduced into Enghmd in 1775* 
In the appendix of the Annual Register of that year 
is an article entitled, " Some account of the new en- 
tertainment, called the Regatta, introduced from Ven- 
ice into England in i775'" The event is chronicled 
as producing an universal sensation. The entire bank 
of the Thames was crowded from London Bridge to 
Milbank, and even Westminster Hall was provided 
with a staging for spectators. Plans of the regatta 
were sold for prices ranging from a penny to one 
shilling each, songs on the occasion were hawked 
about, in some of which " regatta" was made to 
rhyme with " Ranelagh," and " Royal Family" with 
"Liberty." In the account in question, the racing 
does not seem to have attained to any degree of im- 
portance in point of time or speed, since the Register 
dismisses that feature with the meagre note: "The 
wager boats started on the signal of the firing of a 



SWAMPSCOTT. 211 



single piece of cannon," adding that " they were ab- 
sent about fifty minutes." 

The following description of the yacht "Fearless" 
was written by a person competent to judge of her 
sailing qualities : 

" Swampscott has always been noted for her fast- 
sailing fishing-boats. Probably no place can excel 
them in speed and model. They are often compet- 
ing with each other, which gives a very lively in- 
terest to racing. Almost every day these trials of 
speed occur, which aftbrd much food for discussion 
for all on shore when the day is not suitable for fish- 
ing. The 'Fearless' was built in Bath, Me., in 
1S71, by C. B. Harrington. She is schooner-rigged, 
measures fifty-four feet three inches on the water-line, 
is sixteen feet wide and of forty-four tons burden. 
At this time of writing she is owned by E. B. Phil- 
lips, belongs to the Eastern and Boston clubs, and 
has probably made the best record of speed of any 
yacht that floats. She has taken prizes as follows: 
First prize in Eastern, in the first-class, 1S73 and 
1873 ; first prize in second-class, 1S74 and 1875 ; al- 
ways winning first prize in first-class in Boston club, 
and first prize in Boston regattas ; winning prizes at 
Swampscott, Beverly and Isles of Shoals — in all win- 
ning eigliteen successive prizes during four years, in 
a variety of chances, through light, variable and heavy 
winds, and thunder squalls. The owner was a 
Swampscott fisherman some fifty years ago, when he 
took a lively interest in sailing, fishing and shooting, 



212 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

and at near the age of three score and ten years, he 
returns to yacht saiHng, to compete with ' Young 
America.' Either the model of the boat or the skill 
and science of sailing her by the wind has caused 
great wonder, and the mind of the ingenious yachts- 
man and fisherman has been much taxed to discover 
in what manner her speed had been acquired. I have 
been a fisherman and yachtsman for many years, and 
have often contended with the ' Fearless.' The last 
time I saw her sail was at the Isles of Shoals, in 1875, 
at the time the stake boat was displaced. The 
' Resolute,' of New York, ' America ' and ' Fearless ' 
hauled by the wind, ten miles to leeward of the Isles 
of Shoals, the yachts being within speaking distance 
of each other. The ' Fearless' took the lead, arriv- 
ins: at the stake boat at the Isles of Shoals first. The 
' Resolute ' is two hundred and six tons, the ' Amer- 
ica,' one hundred and seventy, and the 'Fearless' 
forty-four tons. The sail took place in a good lead- 
ing breeze — enough to take in staysails. To sail a 
boat of forty tons against the two named, which are so 
celebrated for speed, looked like presumption, j^et the 
' Fearless' was successful in so contending. I do not 
hesitate to say, and feel confidence in the assertion, 
that the ' Fearless' is the smartest schooner boat, by 
the wind, that now floats." The "Fearless" has 
taken thirty-one prizes, consisting of money, cups and 
other articles, up to the present time (18S4). 

The yacht " Halcyon," now so famous, was built at 
Fort Jefferson, N. Y., in the year 1866. She was 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 218 



one hundred and twenty-one tons, old measurement, 
and by the new is registered sixty-seven tons. Since 
being built, the owners have had an overhanging 
stern added to the original hull. Previous to the year 
1 88 1, slie was not considered as a very fast yacht. 
Being purchased by Genieral C. J. Paine, of Boston, 
and was entered by her owner to compete for the 
" Buck" prizes, offered by E. A. Buck, of New York, 
in a race sailed August 5, 1881, and contested by 
yachts of the Eastern and New York clubs. The 
prizes consisted of two cups, of unique design and 
elaborate workmanship, and were valued at five 
hundred dollars each. The course was off Clarke's 
Point, New Bedford, and was thirty miles in length. 
There was a good sailing breeze, the tide was the first 
of the ebb, and all the yachts moved oft' close hauled on 
the starboard tack, and presented a beautiful appear- 
ance. The '' Halcyon " soon took the lead, but was 
hard pressed by the " Dauntless," Commodore Wal- 
ler. Soon after the opening of the race the " Daunt- 
less" set a working staysail, but although it increased 
her speed, she could not pass the " Halcyon," which 
was going through the water so fast she made it al- 
m.ost a seething maelstrom ; it boiled and hissed, but 
she went forward all the more ! Near the close of 
the race a threatening' {'ocr shut the contesting yachts 
from view, but the " Halycon " triumphantly came 
in, almost like a phantom ship, winning the race, 
making the entire distance in three hours twenty- 
seven minutes fifty-six seconds, corrected time. It 



HISTORICAL SKETCHES 



was a great surprise, but to the New York club it 
was the cause of much chagrin, especially so when it 
was remembered that while the winning yacht be- 
longed to their club, she was not thought worthy of 
particular attention in a race. 

In August, 1882, the "Halcyon" sailed another 
race with the New York club, this time with the 
addition of the " Montauk," which had beaten their 
best yachts. The " Halcyon" got the lead in the first 
hour, but then broke the step of the jibboom, which, 
causing delay, lost them the race. The prize was for 
a cup valued at $1000. After the race the fleet left 
for Marblehead, when another race was arranged, but 
no amount of persuasion could induce the owners of 
the " Montauk" to compete with the "Halcyon," 
which won the race. 

On the loth of August, 1883, there was a race 
sailed oft' Marblehead, in which the " Fortuna," 
"Montauk," "Halcyon" and " Estelle " competed 
for a cup valued at $250. The New York Spirit 
of the Ti?ncs says: " The race was, of course, be- 
tween the two center-board boats, for, fast as the ' For- 
tuna' undoubtedly is, no keel yacht has any business 
with boats like the ' Halcyon' and ' Montauk' in any 
weather. It was a pity that the two center-boards 
parted company, as there was so much curiosity to 
see how the ' Montaidv ' would sail with so noted a 
flyer as the ' Halcyon,' but the latter went round on 
the starboard tack soon after the start, the ' Montauk ' 
holding her port reach, and so they were widely sepa- 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 215 

ratecL The judgment of the 'Halcyon' skipper proved 
most correct, and the shift of the wind gave her a nice 
reach, with head full for the mark, the ' Montauk' 
constantly coming up and making a wide circuit in 
her efforts to reach the mark close hauled. Even the 
'Fortuna,' which had also made a reach in shore, 
beat the 'Montauk,' which finished last, the ' Estelle' 
being withdrawn." 

Captain Martin V. B. Stone, of Swampscott, has 
acted as sailing master for twelve years, having charge 
of the following yachts : sloop "Euchre," H. B. Cow- 
ing, owner, three years; schooner "Princess," F. 
W. Lawrence, owner, three years; schooner " Zeph- 
yr," Cen. C. J. Paine, owner, one year ; schooner 
"Halycon," C. J. Paine, owner, five years. Swamp- 
scott is notorious as a birthplace of first-class sailing- 
masters, among them being Captain Hezekiah K. 
Newcomb, now sailing-master of Commodore Hovey's 
yacht " Fortuna," and at present in the West Indies ; 
Captain Seth C. Kendrick, master of the "Fearless," 
a noted yacht ; Captain Rufus Delano, who has sailed 
the " Haze," " Dawn " and " Caroline " and others. 

Mr. Demond Jarvis, of Lincoln House, owned the 
sloop " Trotter " that won many prizes. Built by J. 
A. Knowlton, of Swampscott. 

The schooner yacht "Bessie" is another pleasure 
boat hailing from Swampscott. The " Bessie " was 
built by Pierce Brothers, of South Boston, for parties 
in New Bedford. She was not considered as fast for 
several years, and took no prizes. After several 



216 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

years, Charles P. Curtis purchased the boat, and made 
some important changes by adding an overhanging 
stern, cutting down the masts and widening the heads 
of the sails. Once more she made an appearance in 
her native element, and soon was prominent as a 
yacht of great speed for her class. She has contested 
in many races, and won fifteen first prizes and two 
second. Her measurement is now twenty-seven feet 
on the water line, and thirty-four feet over all. 
While leading in one race, Mr. Curtis' dog " Foam," 
a Chesapeake Bay retriever, bred for fielding wild 
geese and ducks, mistaking a lobster buoy for a duck, 
jumped overboard in pursuit. The delay caused by 
his actions lost the " Bessie" the race. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

BEACH BLUFF. 



Beach Bluff is a part of Swampscott. The first 
piece of land here named on record, independent of 
Lynn, was when Daniel King made his will and spoke 
of his property as being in " Swampscott." In 1671, 
part of his land was at Beach Bluff, near Beaver 
Brook, which runs through Allen Rowe's farm to the 
salt water. Seventy-five years ago there were but two 
houses in this quiet village — one was W. D. Rowe's 
fiirm-house, another was a house built by Jacob Phil- 
lips, over two hundred years ago, which was a small 
building. Addison Child and others enlarged the 
house from time to time until it was a large and roomy 
mansion, being surrounded by a velvety lawn and 
shaded by elms. The house was let to Mr. Chicker- 
ing, piano manufacturer at Boston, and after that 
time was called the " Chickering Mansion." Mr. 
Rowe, who lived directly opposite, died at the age of 
ninety-five years. The year before he died he gave 
one of his friends a problem that he had worked out, 
when a small boy, upon a bootjack with a piece of 
chalk, by the light of a pine knot fire, as follows : 
30 



218 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

" A COW had a calf every year from the time she was 
three years old until she was twenty years old. All 
her calves and their offspring had heifer calves yearly 
from the time they were three years old till they were 
twenty. How many did all produce.^" 

If the walls of our old houses had ears and could 
now talk, they could relate strange stories of the olden 
times, and picture the joy and suffering that was en- 
dured, but which has long since passed away. A 
family named Redin occupied the farm house for 
more than fifty years. It was one of the early grants 
made by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the sec- 
ond recorded (Book i, page 2) in the Essex Registry 
of Deeds. The grantee, Christopher Foster, (some- 
times called Sir Christopher), came over in the "Abi- 
gail" in 1635, at the age of thirty-two. Daniel King, 
a man of influence in the colony, bought it in 1645, 
and subsequently conveyed it (Book i, page iS) to 
his daughter, the wife of Thadeus Redin. She rented 
it to her son John for the term of nine hundred and 
ninety-nine years at £10 a year. The lease (subse- 
quently merged in the fee) will expire in the year 
3679.in our era. Possibly a new era may be evolved 
to date leases from before that one expires. The last 
resident of this old family, also named Thadeus, be- 
coming misanthropic, suspicious and miserly, secreted 
his money in his neighbor's cellar, now Rowe's, 
where he often went to count and gloat over the shin- 
ing pieces, coined before George III. was king. One 
day, impelled by family troubles or some other cause, 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 219 

he strewed his gold about the cellar, and incontinent- 
ly hung himself there, of which his family were 
speedily notified ; but they lost so much time in se- 
curing and dividing his money that the old man was 
dead before they loosened his cravat. Suicides not 
being allowed burial in Christian ground in those 
days, and cremation not being in vogue, the_v inhumed 
his body on the gravelly knoll just north of the house, 
on what is now called Rokely Street, near Hooper 
Cottage. 

Many years afterward, when strangers possessed 
his fireside and the plow had levelled the gravelly 
mound, people began to question his home-made 
grave. To test it, some farm laborers took the ad- 
vantage of a moonlight night to open the unconse- 
crated mound, where they struck a pine box, and, 
upon raising the decaying cover, beheld the self-mur- 
derer lying on his back, as perfect in face and form 
as when on the day his heirs garnered him in ; gaz- 
ing a moment, the bucolic worthies betook themselves 
to their heels in fright. On returning soon after with 
reinforcements, lo, the coffin was empty ! Did the 
subject take his opportunity to " leave his unwhole- 
some grave," and "visit the glimpses of the moon- 
shine," or shall we seek a prophylactic against such 
ghostly fancies in the chemistry of the elements.'' 

In 1755, this place passed from the Redins to Jacob 
Fowle, a wealthy land owner in this and the adjoin- 
ing towns of Salem and Marblehead. He lived in 
patriarchal style, owning many negro slaves whom 



220 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

he seemed to have treated as gle lae ascriptus^ liter- 
ally burying them about the farm wherever most con- 
venient ; several have been unearthed in making re- 
cent improvements. In 1785, Mr. Fowle sold the 
fiirm to Walter Phillips, and it w^as kept in the hands 
of the Phillips family until 1S54. Then George 
Phillips, the grandson of Walter Phillips, sold the 
property to Rev. J. B. Clark and Edward Woodford 
for $7000. Mr. Clark built a house and lived there 
many years. He also set out many trees about the 
grounds, which now give fine shade, and under which 
the Sunday school (Mr. Clark being the pastor of the 
First Congregational Church) and parish enjoyed 
many social hours. Mrs. Manton now owns the 
estate, and Mr. Woodford, who kept a school for boys 
many years, the Chickering house. Mr. Clark and 
Mr. Woodford laid out the avenue, now called Beach 
Avenue, to the sea. Lots, containing one or more 
acres, are laid out on each side of the avenue ; the 
larger part of them were sold at auction at about one 
or two cents per foot. Mr. Pay son erected a house 
on his lot in 1857, which he occupied the year around 
until after Mr. Child purchased it in 1863. He re- 
modelled the house and grounds, but not satisfied 
with one house, he bought more lots, la3nng out 
streets, and built some five or six cottages which have 
all the modern conveniences. The water is pumped 
by a windmill into a tank fifty feet in height; an al- 
most unlimited number of houses can be supplied 
with pure, fresh water from this spring. There are 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 221 

more windmills at the present time in Beach Bluff 
than in the whole town put together. 

" The windmill is a useful thing when fixed upon a vane; 

It tells which way the wind blows and pumps the water up again." 

In 1 868, the county built the road called Atlantic 
Avenue, which runs from Humphrey Square, through 
Beach Bluff to Marblehead, opening many charming 
sites along the shore. 

Dr. Ahlborn and I. P. T. Edmands have pretty lots 
and cottages, and there are two others owned by the 
Phillipses. 

In 1873, Hotel Preston was built upon one of the 
most commanding sites. Near by is the upland, of 
which there are two houses, each of delightful location. 
There is a magnificent view of the water and uninter- 
rupted inland scenery, and the dry soil and good 
drainage, makes it fully appreciated. Phillips Beach, 
a mile in length, furnishes good boating and bathing. 
The Swampscott Branch Railroad passes through the 
village, carrying its many passengers. A pretty 
station was built at Beach Bluff, and a room on the 
second story was finished oft', and now the Farmers' 
Club holds its meetings there. 

"The Elms" has been enlarged during the past 
winter, and now has accommodations for over one 
hundred guests. The lofty English elms about the 
place aftbrd a fine shade, and as the cooling breeze 
comes in from the bay they give a pleasant resting 
place beneath the branches for the guests of the house. 



222 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

The house is within easy reach of both horse and 
steam cars — the horse cars run every hour from Lynn, 
through Swampscott to Marblehead, and return. 

George S. Burton, who has been an earnest advo- 
cate of the natural attactions of Beach Bluff, and who 
has erected there some cosey cottages, replete with all 
city conveniences, one of which he occupies as his 
summer home, is a direct descendant through nine 
generations of Boniface Burton, whose portrait adorns 
the frontispiece of Lewis' History of Lyn?i (edition 
of 1S44, P^o^ ^3)' with the following inscription: 
'' Boniface Burton was a farmer, and was admitted a 
freeman May 6, 1635 ; 1638, sixty acres of land were 
given him. He died June 13, 1669, aged 113 years. 
He was the oldest man that ever lived in Lynn." As 
Swampscott was formerly a part of Lynn, Mr. Bur- 
ton at present resides in the same town as the pro- 
genitor of the family two hundred and fifty years ago. 
The Burton family in the mean time have been one of 
the oldest and most prominent New Hampshire fam- 
ilies, and has given its blood in every war for the 
preservation of the colony and subsequent nation 
since the landing of the Pilgrims in 1630 ; and the de- 
scendants of this same Boniface have peopled every 
Northern State and Territory in this country. 

George D. Fenno rented the Wilcox Cottage for 
the season of 1884 ; this cottage is also on Beach 
Bluff Avenue. 

Leonard Ware has a pretty cottage on Forest 
Avenue. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 223 



Allen W. Clough, at Beach Bluff, is station agent 
and postmaster. Charles S. Lewis is station agent at 
Phillips Beach. The last named station has a tower, 
and a $200 clock given by the late J. P. Palmer. On 
one side of the station are the Phillips Fairbanks 
Scales, of the latest improved pattern. 

Mr. L. Ware, Jr., planted rock maple trees in the 
Grammar School-house yard, in 1S7S, which are an 
ornament to the town. 

Henry F. Miller, H. F. Miller, Jr., and J. C. Mil- 
ler, have pretty cottages on Mostyn Street. Many 
other cottages and stately mansions adorn the place. 

In 1875, the huge fawn-colored grey-hound, famil- 
iarly called " Brownie," died suddenly of heart dis- 
ease when in his twelfth year. After winning the 
Waterloo cup in England, which is the highest prize 
a dog can take in a coursing match, his owner gave 
him to a citizen of Boston. He passed the remainder 
of his days with Addison Child, at Beach Bluff, win- 
ning the hearts of all by his beauty, grace and intelli- 
gence. A cast of his head was taken for the Museum 
of Natural History, Boston. 

In 18S3, Cedar Hill Cottage was burned ; loss 
$5500. First jewelry store in town was opened in 

18S3. 

The oldest lady in town, in 18S5, ^^ Widow Thank- 
ful Higgins, born 1798. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE POINT. 



William Fenno, the popular proprietor of a res- 
taurant in Theatre Alley, Boston, went down to 
Swampscott in 1835, on a fishing excursion WMth 
Captain Miles Blanchard. While passing the Point, 
Mr. Fenno remarked to the skipper, " That would 
make a fine summer resort." On their return they 
walked over to view the landscape, and on looking it 
over, Mr. Fenno resolved to buy a lot of land there. 
He soon found the owners, and the deeds were passed 
for land bounded on the south by the sea, on the east 
by the land of Jonathan Phillips, on the north by the 
old road, and on the west by land of Nathan Martin. 
The lot was called New Cove, Phillips Point, Swamp- 
scott, and contained about twenty-two acres. The 
deeds were signed by William Chase, Jr., Walter 
Phillips, and eighteen other heirs. The field was 
bought for $1700, a much smaller sum than it is 
worth to day. On this lot Mr. Fenno erected a hotel 
called the Ocean House, and for many years it was a 
resort for summer pleasure-seekers. Among the first 
parties who found their way to this hotel were Messrs. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 225 



Philo S. Shelton, of Boston, and John Gushing, of 
Watertown. After two years Mr. Fenno let the hotel 
to Colonel Thomas Alker and Mr. Messenger to run 
for the summer, and built a new hotel named Fenno 
Cottage. 

Mr. Putman was successful with Ocean House 
Company about 1S50. 

The chief features of attraction possessed by this 
now fashionable watering-place — this Mecca of the 
North Shore, to which the dwellers in marble halls, 
invalid tenants of brick and mortar houses, the wearied 
man of business, the merchant from his counting- 
house, the lawyer from his briefs, the physician fol- 
lowing his convalescent patients, the chemist from his 
laboratory, the clergyman from his study, the fatigued 
followers in the train of metropolitan excitement, to 
which all, who can find here temporary homes dur- 
ing the summer solstice, are now hurrying — are its 
unsurpassed sea view, its invigorating breezes wafted 
across the sea from every point of the compass save 
due north, its bold and rugged front piled up against 
old ocean, its marble beach, whose surface scarce 
deigns to receive an impression from the dainty feet 
which patter over it, and its unequalled facilities for 
bathing. 

There is a famous spring at the Point, which, al- 
though only a foot or two in depth, has never been 
known to run dry, even in times of the most severe 
drought. It discharges from five hundred to two 
thousand gallons each twenty-four hours, and is well 
31 



226 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

known, not only to the immediate vicinity, but to the 
neighboring towns. It was often the case, when the 
spring was open to the public, that persons from a dis- 
tance would bring with them vessels for carrying the 
water to their homes, and thus procure several days' 
supply of the best drinking water. 

But there exists a spring of pure, fresh water upon 
the beach, only to be reached when the tide is more 
than half out, which, although not of so extensive a 
reputation, was very well known and enjoyed in a 
peculiar way, by the eccentric proprietor of the old 
Fenno estate, who always appreciated a good joke, 
and was a proverbially generous host. It was his 
custom to invite his boon companions to visit him at 
Swampscott, and, after they had enlivened themselves 
at his festive board, he would take them for an airing 
to the beach and, removing the sand and gravel 
which concealed the spring, throw out with his hands 
enough of the material to make a receptacle sufficient 
to hold the contents of a bottle, and then pour into it 
a full flagon of Hennessey's best brandy, and bid them 
drink it before it became diluted, and they generally 
effectually did it. 

Joshua Sears, well known in Boston, in 1S46, once 
said that the ladies coming from Boston like to enjoy 
a sea bath at Swampscott Beach in just such costumes 
as they please, in elaborate costumes or in old cast- 
off" dresses, without fear of talk. And one would 
almost think, to see the lady bather of to-day, that a 
genuine mermaid had come up out of the water. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 227 



In the month of July, 1847, James L- Little made an 
agreement with VV. P. M. Martin to purchase of him 
that portion of his present estate in Swampscott, 
Phillips Point, that was afterward conveyed to him, 
October 35, 1S47, about which tim.e he commenced 
the house known as " Blythewood," in which he now 
resides, and which he occupied for the first time in 
the spring of 1848. Mr. Little at that time was the 
senior member of the firm of Little, Alden & Co., 
importers of dry goods. The land then purchased 
was rough, rocky and swampy, covered with stunted 
trees and underbrush, and it would be hard to recog- 
nize it in its present state of improvement. At or 
about the same time Edward C. Bates purchased a 
property along side of that of Mr. Little, from E. B. 
Phillips, and built the residence now known in its 
improved form as " Greenhill." The property was 
added to Mr. Little's estate by purchase from the 
heirs of Mr. Bates, January 21, 1S79. Shortly after 
the date, Mr. Little plowed up the garden and laid it 
out to lawn, building two very large and fine man- 
sions, one of which, the " Shingleside," has been oc- 
cupied by Charles P. Hemenway for three summers; 
the other, " Grasshead," by Henry C. Weston for 
three summers. The " Greenhill " house was occu- 
pied one summer after its accession to Mr. Little's es- 
tate, by H. C. Weston, m 1880; one summer b}- 
David P. Kimball, 1881, who is connected with Mr. 
Little through the marriage of his youngest son, 
David M. Little and Miss Clara B. Kimball, daugh- 



228 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

ter of Mr. Kimball ; by W. L. Bradley, during the 
summer of 1SS3 and 1SS3, and is leased for the pres- 
ent summer to Hon. W. A. Russell, M. C. (1SS4). 

About the time that these houses were built, the 
house known as the " Cottage," on the old Bates es- 
tate, was enlarged and altered by Arthur Little for a 
residence for Mrs. Grace A. Oliver, the daughter of 
Mr. Little, whose literary tastes are well known. 
Those who have had a glimpse of this most charming 
cottage, pronounce it delightful in all its appoint- 
ments. The house known as " Beach End," which 
has been occupied for four seasons by ex-Mayor 
Samuel C. Cobb, of Boston, was first built on land 
purchased by Charles L. Pearson, April 6, 1867, and 
was acquired of him by Mr. Little, October 9, 1873, 
for his oldest son, James L. Little, Jr., who has since 
left the paternal homestead for Brookline, where he 
built himself a very fine residence. The " Beach 
End" house was added to during the occupancy by 
Mr. Little, Jr. " Brier Gate," as the residence of 
John Mason Little was called, was built in the au- 
tumn of 1874, upon land belonging in part to the old 
estate purchased in 1S47, and in part upon land pur- 
chased in 1874, the latter being a part of what was 
then known as the old Roberts barn ; in foct the old 
homestead of Jonathan Phillips. John M. Little, is 
the second son of J. L. Little, and is his man of busi- 
ness, and has always been most intimately connected 
with him in his relations. Mr. Little has a tower 
on his estate, in connection with a reservoir which 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 229 

supplies all his cottages with pure water from a spring 
near by. The water is pumped up by a small steam 
engine. {See Finis. ^ 

"John's Field" was a part of Farmer Phillips' 
farm and contained about five acres. Among its 
other features was a beautiful cove. About ninety 
years ago, a lady whose name was Mary Cove, took a 
pleasant walk, one fine morning, to Swampscott, 
along the coast. After a long walk she came upon a 
cove with a white, sandy beach, and the tossing waves 
as they were breaking upon the shore. Anxious to 
see the rocks and the inner part of the cove, she 
climbed down over them, but by some misstep she lost 
her footing and fell into the water. As good fortune 
would have it, a farmer was near, and seeing her, 
caught her dress and pulled her in upon the shore. 
At this time the cave was called simply " The Cove," 
but after this incident it was called "The Old 
Woman's Cove." In this place many loads of sea- 
weed were washed upon the shore, but for a long 
time no way could be invented to carry it away, since 
the clifi'was so steep that oxen could not carry it up. 
At last Mr. Phillips found a way by which the sea- 
weed could be raised up to land and carted away. A 
car was made and a pulley constructed, and in this 
way the seaweed was hoisted and then borne away by 
oxen. It took two men to load, two to unload, and 
one to drive the oxen. Daniel Webster was (as re- 
port says) the first farmer who used seaweed as a 
fertilizer. He made the experiment on his farm at 



230 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 

Marshfield, and there is no doubt but* that Farmer 
Phillips was the first to use it on his farm. It is very 
probable that to a certain degree the rich land of to- 
day of the Phillips estate has resulted from the use of 
seaweed. Dr. G. H. Lodge purchased the "John's 
Field" of the heirs of Jonathan Phillips, in 1S49, and 
there were fourteen signatures to the deed. The 
doctor built a fine house near the cove and surrounded 
it with beautiful lawns and ornamental trees. A long 
and winding avenue points the way to the house, 
starting from Orient Street. The tall and bending 
trees meet overhead and make one think of passing 
through a tunnel in a forest, if such a thing could be. 
John D. Bates purchased the lot formerly owned by 
Nathaniel Martin, known as Cedar Clifls, Phillips 
Point. He built a pretty villa and lived in it many 
summers. Mr. Bates has stated that when he first 
came to Swampscott summer visitors left their best 
carriages at home for fear that the salt water might 
tarnish them. The estate is now owned by Mrs. 
Anna Lloyd Jeffries, wife of Colonel John Jeffries, 
and it is one of the pleasantest places at the Point. 



POEM BY THE LATE MISS BEERS. 

Miss Delia Beers, of Swampscott, who died March 
17, 1884, at the age of twenty-eight years, was the 
author of the following lines, written on the occasion 
of her graduation at Salem Normal School : 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 231 



THE BASKET WEAVER. 

Down by the seashore, all alone, 

Sat weary little May, 
Weaving the long, lithe willovv strips 

Into a basket gay. 

O, how her little body ached ! 

For she had worked all day; 
And how she longed to be somewhere 

To be at rest, for aye. 

She was so tired, so sick of work, 

Her life was full of sighs ; 
And with her hand she dashed away 

The tears that filled her eyes. 

But now the sun is going down. 

In shadows is the lea; 
His golden beams shoot far across 

The blue, the murmuring sea. 

And one more bright than all the rest 

Is shining in her hair. 
And makes her little mournful face 

Look like a picture fair. 

Then how she wished, poor little girl, 

That she could climb afar 
Up to the heavenly city fair 

On such a golden bar. 

She thought perhaps the lovely cloud 
The gate of heaven might be, 

And if she could but open it 
She would the angels see. 

And as she looked at those bright scenes 
Her dark blue eyes did close, 

For the great brightness dazzled them ; 
Soon she forget her woes. 

At length^ the'long, long weary day, 

In silence has passed by; 
The stars are peeping, one by one. 

From out the vaulted sky. 



232 HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 



A breeze sprang up, the waters moaned 
And rolled in toward the shore; 

The little waves came near her feet, 
She did not heed them more. 

Her small bare feet drew up beneath 
• The ragged gown she wore ; 
The murmuring wave still nearer come, 
Still slept she, as before. 

And now the surging waves are near! 

Their roar her feelings calms ; 
And now they lift her poor frail form 

Up in their awful arms. 

Dear little May ! is there no hope — 

No saving power nigh? 
Oh, yes ! thy loving Father 's near ! 

You '11 see Him by and by. 

The cold blue waves are carrying thee 

On to the heavenly shore; 
No human aid can help thee now, 

Thy spirit longs to soar. 

The night at length has passed away, 

The sun brings in the day; 
No trace is seen on the lone shore 

Of tired little May. 

For thro' the golden gates she 's passed. 

Unto her home above ; 
We know it opened to her knock, 

Because of her great love. 

Only a glance at life was hers — 

A life bereft of love; 
Only a life of shadows here — 

A life of rest above. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

THE MUDGE ESTATE. 



This historic place is justly the pride of Swamp- 
scott. Approaching the village by King's Beach the 
visitor has on his right the sea, with Egg Rock and 
Nahant in the distance, and Black Will's Cliff near at 
hand. Directly in front is Monument Square, its 
granite shaft and ancient cannon telling of our honored 
heroes; and just beyond, its green lawn, its beautiful 
shrubbery, and its picturesque cottage, exposed hos- 
pitably to the eyes of all ; and giving promise of the 
beauty of the town, is the time-honored estate. 
Handed down through two hundred and fifty years 
from the Humphreys, it was a hundred years in the 
possession of the Burrill family, who in 1799 deeded 
it to Robert Hooper, of Marblehead. When the 
deed was given seven persons named Burrill signed 
it, together with three others, Samuel Waldo acting 
as witness. The last-named gentleman afterwards 
went to Maine, and the town of "Waldo" was 
named for him. In 1S43, Mrs. W. Reed, deeded the 
farm, containing about one hundred and thirty acres 
to the late Hon. E. Redington Mudge, for the sum of 



234 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

eight thousand dollars, a property for which Mr. 
Mudge declined an offer of one hundred thousand 
dollars. The name of Mudge was originally written 
"• Mugge," and can be traced back to the fourteenth 
century. E. R. Mudge was born in Orrington, Me., 
March 23, i8i3, and died in iSSi, aged sixty-nine 
years. He married Caroline A. Patten, of Portland, 
Me., who died January 9, 1SS2. Mr. and Mrs. 
Mudge are buried in the garth at St. Stephen's 
Memorial Church at Lynn — this church having been 
erected by Mr. Mudge as a memorial to his children, 
Charles Redington and Fannie Olive. The idea 
which has gone abroad that there were tombs in the 
garth or in the basement is a false one, as no one will 
be buried there except the Mudge family, and the 
garth will be devoted to no other use. In early life 
Mr. Mudge was a merchant in Portland, Me., and in 
1840 he opened the St. Charles Hotel, New Orleans. 
He left New Orleans in 1843 and engaged in mercan- 
tile pursuits, having his home in Swampscott. Upon 
taking charge of the St. Charles Hotel, Stephen Free- 
man and his wife and two children were slaves, and 
Mr. Mudge gave $1500 for the family. On buying 
the " Reed" farm he took with him Freeman and his 
family, and gave them their freedom. Freeman re- 
mained with him nearly eight years, when he left him 
to reside in Lynn, where he may still be found (1884). 
In 1863, Mr. Mudge deeded the old farm-house and 
about three acres of land to his daughter. Near the 
farm-house stands the famous elm {ree which for over 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 235 



one hundred and fifty years has cast its pleasant shade 
over the house and grounds. " Paradise" road, which 
was opened by Mr. Mudge through his forest, where 
the first spring flowers are usually found, has been 
greatly enjoyed by the public, thanks to his kindness 
in allowing access thereto. 

The stone cottage called " Elmwood " was built 
with great care at a short distance from the farm house. 
Many of the fine forest trees on the lawn Mr. Mudge 
planted himself, and now, after a growth of forty 
years, they are a beautiful sight, and passers-by often 
bless the memory of the man who by planting them 
made his estate a joy to others besides himself. '' Elm- 
wood" has a fine view of the ocean. The entrance 
from Burrill Street is by a shaded avenue, in whose 
trees Mr. Mudge took especial delight*. A fountain is 
sometimes seen throwing up its spray in the sunlight 
and returning it upon the lawn with a musical sound. 

'• While the birds are singing- in the morning, 
And the myrtle and the ivy are in bloom." 

All who were acquainted with Mr. Mudge, or who 
know of the position of respect which he held in 
Swampscott, will be pleased to see the following ac- 
count of his father, the Rev. Enoch Mudge, and of his 
noble bequest to the church of which he was a com- 
municant : Rev. Enoch Mudge, father of the late Hon. 
E. R. Mudge, was a pioneer Methodist preacher of 
the New England Conference, and a man of remark- 
able originality and power. His educational advan- 



236 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

tages had been of a very limited character, as his 
early youth was passed in a Lynn shoemaker's shop, 
yet he everywhere attracted attention through his 
peculiar gifts in prayer and exhortation. In a volume 
entitled " Itinerant Preaching in the Early Days of 
Methodism," prepared from the journal of Mrs. 
Tucker, a contemporary of Rev. Mr. Mudge, the 
following interesting allusions to the gifted young 
preacher occur: " One evening my husband and my- 
self were invited to take tea at Mrs. Perry's, one of 
the family of Commodore O. H. Perry, the celebrated 
naval hero (this was at Newport, R. I., in 1829). 
Her mother, an aged lady, was present, and related 
the following incident of her first experience in listen- 
ing to Methodist preaching, which was by this early 
pioneer of Methodism in New England, who left his 
shoemaker's bench in Lynn, a mere boy, and sallied 
forth into the fields. Several of his first efforts were 
made in Newport, R. L, where his youth, his remark- 
able talents, and his fervid piety attracted crowds to 
hear him. Mrs. Perry related that, being on her way 
to church one Sabbath morning, a friend met her and 
said, ' Madam, why do n't you go to the Court House 
and hear the remarkable young preacher.? ' ' Wliat is 
his name.?' inquired Mrs. Perry. ' I do n't know,' re- 
plied her friend ; ' but this I do know, he is the most 
wonderful preacher I ever heard.' Mrs. Perry's curi- 
osity being awakened, she went up to the Court 
House and found it completely filled. With difficulty 
obtaining a seat, she looked up at the pulpit and saw 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 237 

a little boy sitting there, but took little note of him, as 
she sat anxiously awaiting the preacher's appearance. 
What was her surprise, when this boy arose and com- 
menced reading a hymn ! She was still more sur- 
prised when he knelt and made the most fervent and 
striking prayer she ever listened to. When he com- 
menced speaking she observed that he used no notes. 
Now she began to tremble for him, thinking the little 
boy would surely break down ; but he went on with 
his discourse, and as he advanced, his flow of lan- 
guage, his knowledge of divine things, and his fervid 
eloquence, so unlike anything she had ever heard 
before, astonished not only her, but every one in the 
house. That wonderful boy so impressed her that for 
many long years his appearance and remarkable ser- 
mon was fixed in her memory. On one occasion 
Brother Mudge was visiting a friend's house where a 
large company had assembled, including a very pom- 
pous lady whose husband was very proud of his con- 
nection with Harvard. She had very patronizingly 
condescended to notice the young preacher, and with 
rather a consequential air inquired of him, ' At what 
college did you take your degree, sir.?' Brother 
Mudge replied, with great simplicity of manner, ' I 
took my degree, madam, at my father's shoemaker's 
bench in Lynn.' The lady seemed not a little sur- 
prised and confounded, but the company appreciated 
the truthful good sense of the young preacher." 

St. Stephen's Memorial Church, situated at the cor- 
ner of South Common and Blossom Streets in Lynn, 



238 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

of which the Rev. Louis DeCormis is rector, is one of 
the finest specimens of church architecture in the 
country. Its walls are built of a reddish granite 
rubble, quarried on the estate of Hon. E. R. Mudge, 
at Swampscott, with facings and angles of red brick, 
and weatherings and carvings of Nova Scotia free- 
stone. The plan of the church proper is in the form 
of a Latin cross, the apse facing the east ; but the 
spaces in the angles of this cross are covered by aisle 
roofs, so that the whole area is included in the body 
of the building, thus presenting a rectangular audi- 
torium sixty-eight feet from north to south, and ninety 
feet from the west wall to the arch of the apse. The 
nave and transepts are severally forty feet v/ide, and 
the latter are twelve and a half feet deep, the angles 
of the central crossing being marked by four clustered 
stone piers, from the capitals of which spring open 
timber trusses of Georgia pine, across nave and tran- 
septs, and diagonally, supporting the roof, which is 
visible in its structure to the apex. 

The organ which was built from specifications 
drawn by E. K. Weston, organist of the church, is a 
model in every particular. 

Over the main entrance of the porch is carved in 
the arch the words " That thy power, thy glory, and 
the mightiness of thy kingdom might be known unto 
men." In the porch over an inscribed slab surmounted 
by a bracket is the stone presented by St. Margaret's 
Church, of King's Lynn, England. 

The edifice was erected by the late Hon. Enoch 




MUDGE MEMORIAL EPISCOPAL CHURCH, LYNN. 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 239 

Redington Mutlge as a memorial to two of his chil- 
dren — Charles Redington, who was killed at Gettys- 
burg, and Fannie Olive, who died about two years 
ago — the entire expense being borne by him. He 
was deeply interested in the construction of the 
church, personally inspecting each step taken in the 
progress toward completion, and made the last pur- 
chase of materials needed for the furnishing of the 
structure only a few hours before his death, which 
occurred Saturday, October i, 1S83. 

Mr. Mudge's artistic taste and wide experiences 
added to his devout attachment to the church of 
which he was so prominent a member, led him to 
erect this costly and enduring memorial, and his ideas 
have been ably seconded by the architects. 

It is a fact of sad interest that the first service held 
in the church was the funeral of its generous donor. 

Among the altar furnishings are a massive solid gold 
communion service made to order in England, and a 
beautiful Spanish altar cloth five hundred years old. 

We cannot better bring these historical sketches to 
a close than by noting what will be valuable historical 
material for some distant generation, namely, the con- 
tents of the box deposited under the corner stone of 
the church. The stone has sculptured on its west 
face a cross, and on its northern face the date 1880. 
The box is of copper, hermetically sealed, contains 
the Bible and prayer-book formerly used by Charles 
Redington Mudge and Fanny Olive Mudge ; a me- 
morial of the Mudge family in the United States; in 



240 HISTORICAL SKETCHES 

memoriam of Charles Redington Mudge, Lieutenant 
Colonel, Second Massachusetts Infantry, born in New 
York, October 2, 1839, killed at Gettysburg, July 3, 
1S63 ; names of the standing committee of the diocese 
of Massachusetts ; names of delegates to the General 
Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church of 
iSSo ; roll of parchment with the names of the officers 
of St. Stephen's Church ; historical sketch of the 
Church Aid Society of Lynn ; programme of the 
Easter festival of the Sunday School of St. Stephen's ; 
silver dollar of the United States of the latest coinage ; 
journal of the diocesan convention of 1879; church 
almanac of 1S80; copies of all the Boston and Lynn 
newspapers of latest dates ; a copper plate bearing 
the inscription : 

"May 19, 18S0. 

"This church, named in honor of St. Stephen, 
the martyr, the corner stone of which is this day 
laid by Benjamin Henry Paddock, D.D., bishop of 
Massachusetts, is to be erected by Enoch Redington 
Mudge as a thank offering to Almighty God, to be 
consecrated to the glory of God, and in memory of 
Charles Redington and Fanny Olive, children of 
Enoch Redington Mudge. The fee of this land and 
church buildings thereof is held by the trustees of 
donations to the Protestant Episcopal Church in the 
diocese of Massachusetts. The deed of trust rehearses 
that St. Stephen's parish in the City of Lynn, Essex 
County, Massachusetts, shall have the use of these 



OF SWAMPSCOTT. 



241 



buildings in conformity with the rites, ceremonies, 
usages and canons of the branch of the Holy Catholic 
Church, known in law as the Protestant Episcopal 
Church in the United States of America. Architects 
of this Church, Messrs. Ware & Van Brunt of Bos- 
ton." 




33 



I 



<J 



928 



I 







'11 * 



'■f,".,'„'ilf''.((,"'l(!M|!iili[ 

.ill;;;!; 






mm 



MBmui'i 



mMm 



